THE UNITED Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) yesterday launched the Regional Youth Advisory Group at a meeting here, and the youth representatives were encouraged to continue the advocacy work that they were engaged in to reach out to their peers, speak up and to disagree where necessary.
Speaking to the youths from across the Caribbean at the Grand Coastal Inn, East Coast Demerara, was Dan Baker, Director – UNFPA Sub-Regional Office for the Caribbean.
“At UNFPA, we would like to think that we can support you but that you yourselves and your voices that are going to make a difference. When we can support you we will,” he said.
Noting that the whole purpose to having Youth Advisory Groups is that they should operate as a two-way street, Baker said: “We like to give you opportunities such as this, such as the World Youth Congress and others, but then we want very much to make use of you and your talent to help in designing our programmes and look at what we are doing and getting the youth voice there.”
“Sometimes it works well, sometimes it doesn’t work well, like everything else in life, but we have found that we really do benefit from listening to all of you and having your input and without that we are never going to be a success in our organisation,” Baker noted.
“What we want for young men is for them to have healthy successful lives but we also want them to know what it is to protect themselves and their partners from HIV, not to have unwanted pregnancies, to know about sexually transmitted infections, to understand what a scourge violence against women and gender based violence and how everyone can be put at risk by a violent society,” Baker said.
He noted that the UNFPA is promoting all of these programmes with the ultimate aim of “achieving our goal.” He feels that these are goals for everyone, and “so we feel very passionate about that.”
Baker said: “I am very much convinced that the work that you are doing is very vital to us but we hope that it is also useful to you.”
Territories around the region were asked to nominate National Youth Advisors to be appointed as regional Youth Advisors to form the regional Youth Advisory Group. Through a democratic process, Guyana’s representatives were selected. These are Mark Ross and Jewel Collier, who will be expected to ensure that their colleagues in Guyana are updated on regional and global youth issues among other tasks. (Johann Earle)