Director of Youth Cleviston Hunte hands Kiendra Butcher the Life Skills Award.
BYS CHALLENGE
Mon, 12/12/2016 - 12:00am
The lack of a place to call home is presenting some challenges for the Barbados Youth Service (BYS).
Addressing the graduation ceremony of the September 2015 intake on Saturday, Director of the BYS, Hally Haynes, outlined the challenges the organisation is facing in not being able to provide some of its services.
He pointed out that once again due to the unavailability of the Barbados Cadet Camp site at the Paragon Base, the programme had to be conducted at the BYS Warrens headquarters, a facility which was lacking the space for
the programme’s full experience.
“To this end, these young men and women did not have the benefit of the residential training programme, which is a critical component of the Barbados Youth Service One-Year Developmental Programme,” he said.
Haynes added that along with other things, the residential programme allows for rigorous training in the tenets of drill.
Outlining the year in review for those gathered at the Radisson Aquatica, he reported numerous successes for the 67 graduates including high completion rates within the Barbados Defence Force co-ordinated Barbados Youth Service Life Skills Programme, and the CXC programme.
“Trainees from the September 2015 intake sat the May/June 2016 CXC Examinations and I am pleased to report that 71 per cent of the trainees who sat the examinations gained certification,”
he said to applause.
In addition, due to the ministry’s extension of the academic training programme, 24 graduands are registered to sit the January exams.
Delivering her speech, Ruth Blackman, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, gave the assurance that the BYS would soon have a new permanent home, stressing that government is actively looking for such a facility, noting that in some cases the intake numbers had to be reduced due to this fact.
“The minister will have much to say on this in the not too distant future, but this is evidence that the government of Barbados through the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth is committed to the empowerment of our young people – including those who may be at risk,” she added. (JMB)