Jamaica has introduced that it’s going to use its chairmanship of the 15-member Caribbean Group (CARICOM), beginning in July 2025, to spotlight the position of youth because the architects of the area’s future.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who will take over the chairmanship from Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, identified that just about 60 % of the Caribbean inhabitants is made up of younger individuals.
“You’ve gotten the facility to redefine the Caribbean’s place on the earth,” Holness stated in a particular message forward of the forty ninth assembly of Caribbean leaders scheduled for July 6-8 in Montego Bay.
He highlighted the CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Programme as an important platform amplifying the collective voices of younger individuals and inspired youth to be energetic co-creators of the area’s progress.
Holness additionally careworn the significance of the technological period, noting that the “digital fluency” and inventive vitality of younger persons are important to the area’s improvement.
“You’re the innovators who will create new industries; the entrepreneurs who will redefine our economies; and the leaders who will advocate for local weather justice and sustainability. I urge you to stay daring, assured and visionary.
“Allow us to work collectively to create a Area the place your concepts are valued, your contributions are celebrated and your futures are secured. We is not going to simply take heed to your voices; we’ll act in your concepts,” he stated.
International Affairs and International Commerce Minister Kamina Johnson Smith advised the Jamaica Info Service (JIS) Suppose Tank on Tuesday that human improvement, capacity-building, and partnerships might be central themes throughout Jamaica’s chairmanship.
The summit might be held beneath the theme ‘Folks, Partnerships, Prosperity: Selling a Safe and Sustainable Future.’ Johnson Smith defined that cautious thought and planning went into the theme’s improvement.
She stated ‘individuals’ was positioned first to emphasise the significance of human improvement and capacity-building as the inspiration for all regional initiatives.
Relating to ‘partnerships,’ the minister said, “Not solely as a area however globally, we have now to make sure that we have now applicable partnerships in place to construct resilience and to realize our objectives.”
She added that the concentrate on ‘prosperity’ displays the aspirational developmental objectives shared by all CARICOM member states.
Reflecting on the phrase ‘selling a safe and sustainable future,’ Johnson Smith stated, “peace, stability and safety are important pre-conditions for prosperity and require collective dedication from all.
“The sustainable component additionally consists of an financial side. Sustainability can also be about inclusive and sustained financial progress…. That is key to constructing a area that isn’t solely environmentally sustainable but additionally able to reaching extra collectively,” she added.
