By: E. Williams
Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 7, 2017 – It appears that St. Kitts and Nevis has not taken up the invitation to send representatives to the World Youth Conference in Belize.
At news time, no reason was given by the authorities, including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Youth, Hon. Shawn Richards for the absence of a St. Kitts and Nevis delegation at the November 6thto 9th forum which brings together some 250 youth leaders, youth development workers and academic researches from around the world to focus on the United Nations programme for action on youth.
The forum at the Ramada Belize City Princess is being held under the theme: “Globally Running to 2030; Becoming Sustainably Strong.
This event is hosted annually for youth leaders, and designed to facilitate effective partnerships with youth oriented and youth-led organizations, to further strengthen their inclusion in the decision-making processes and the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The conference is a timely response stemming from dialogue out of the regional and international commitments that were made, such as the:
World Youth Conference 2016- New Delhi, India
CHOGM Youth Forum 2015- St. Paul’s Bay, Malta
9th UNESCO Youth Forum 2015- Paris, France
World Youth Conference 2014- Colombo, Sri Lanka
The WYC will:
Connect and build bridges.
Develop an action plan; learning from the past, assessing the present and accelerating the future.
The Mahogany Declaration (The Belize declaration on Youth): a comprehensive drafted document created by young leaders that will establish their commitment towards the implementation of the SDGs and will solidify their commitment to serve as leaders of change, thus providing an inclusive youth approach and shared ownership of the SDGs to the young people.
Photo 2 – Hon. Shawn Richards
