THE Sugar Industry Labour Welfare Fund Committee (SILWFC), in collaboration with the First Lady Foundation and the Ministry of Labour, has conducted a two-day Training of Trainers workshop on social issues affecting the community of Black Bush Polder, Corentyne, Berbice.

Held last week at the Mibicuri Baptist Church, the forum brought together a total of 20 participants drawn equally from the four homesteads of Black Bush Polder, namely Mibicuri, Yakusari, Johanna and Lesbeholden.

The workshop focused on Conflict Management, Suicide Prevention, Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, Child Labour, Domestic Violence, School Drop-out, and the Value of Good Parenting. Facilitators from the Ministry of Labour were Mr. Patrick Findlay, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour, who headed a team comprising Mr. Deigo Alphonso, Administrator of the Men’s Affairs Bureau; Steven Singh, Men’s Affairs Officer; and Prandatt Basdeo, Senior Labour Officer. Ms. Chitrika represented the First Lady Foundation, of which Mr. Basdeo is also a member.

The participants were predominantly youths, but there was a good representation of teachers, religious and community leaders and self-employed businessmen, each having a passionate commitment to working robustly towards addressing and stemming the tide of the known social ills confronting the communities.

The objective of the training was to equip a cadre of trainers with the knowledge necessary to effectively respond to the social issues evolving within the homesteads of Black Bush Polder, so as to avoid disastrous outcomes.

Ms. Kavita Bishun, Administrative Manager (Ag) of the SILWFC, tendered an excuse on behalf of First Lady Mrs. Ramotar, who was unavoidably absent. She also opened the forum with one minute’s silence as a mark of respect for those brothers and sisters who had lost their lives to suicide and domestic violence in and around the community.

Ms. Bishun congratulated the participants in training. Preparing them for the very serious and important task ahead, she affirmed: “We believe that, as trainers, you will be able to share your knowledge and experiences in your communities, to make a positive difference for the betterment of the lives of your brothers and sisters…. To help you to do that, we are conducting this workshop that will be facilitated by personnel from the Ministry of Labour. It means that you will be a part of history, as people reflect on the outcomes that are expected to be

achieved from this workshop.”

Ms. Bishun said participants were being trained with the hope that they would train others who would, in turn, train others; so that the training of residents of the community would have a multiplier effect, thereby promoting the objectives of the initiative.

The workshop, which began on Tuesday last, concluded on Wednesday, and Certificates of Participation were presented to the 20 participants of the programme, who are now equipped, ready and rearing to embark on the task at hand.

Presentation was done by SILWFC’s Ms. Sattie Gopal.

Last week’s training programme follows the launch of a workshop held on July 26 last to address social issues confronting Black Bush Polder. It was held by First Lady of the Co-operative

Republic of Guyana, Mrs. Deolatchmie Ramotar, who is also Chairperson of the Sugar Welfare Fund Committee. That workshop was held at the Mibicuri Secondary School and was the initiative of Guyana’s First Lady.
Among those who addressed the workshop held in July were Dr. Pradeep Balram, GuySuCo’s Medical Officer; Mr. Jairam Petam, GuySuCo’s Human Resource Director; Mr. Bhopaul Jhagroo, Region Six Regional Vice Chairman; and Mr. Kenneth Joseph, General Secretary of NAACIE and member of SILWFC. At that workshop, the idea was mooted to implement training in response to the social issues of which suicide ranked number one.

(By Shirley Thomas)