Black Immigrant Daily News

With the successful second staging of the IGT Coding and Robotics Rock! Camp for its After School Advantage (ASA) beneficiaries, Brendan Hames, Regional Director IGT– Caribbean, noted that more students have expressed a desire to be a part of the next training. IGT aims to meet these additional requests as best as possible, in continuing the programme which caters exclusively to students within IGT ASA Centres across the Caribbean – many of whom are either in state care (children’s home or place of safety) or are otherwise disadvantaged youth.

“The response to our introductory Level 1 training in 2021 was overwhelmingly positive,” Hames stated. “With the addition of the more advanced Level 2 component and focus on regional sustainability, there was an even greater demand for enrolment from our ASA student groups across the region.”

Over 60 youth from IGT ASA Centres in Antigua and Barbuda; Barbados; Jamaica; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Maarten; and Trinidad and Tobago participated in this year’s camp. Antigua and Barbuda were new to the list of participating islands for this year’s staging of the camp. The Mona GeoInformatics Institute (MGI) at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona Campus who designed the course and delivered the training, received curriculum development guidance from Nalini Ramsawak-Jodha, Education Specialist and Lecturer from the School of Education at the UWI, St. Augustine Campus. The camp culminated in late August with more than 30 students completing introductory level training and over 30 additional students receiving intermediate training at Level 2 for the first time.

Pleased Participants

Participants have indicated that this year’s camp taught them useful skills and broadened their horizons in terms of future career options. In the post-camp evaluations, students identified a wide range of future endeavours that the experience had ignited in them, everything from e-commerce stores to gaming and game design to cybersecurity (“ethical hacking”).

“Overall, it was a pleasant experience,” stated Joshua Langford, a Level Two participant from the IGT ASA Centre at Island Academy.  “For our final project, we worked on a picture slider of our country which gave use a lot of basic experience in coding that we can use in the future to improve our regions technologically.”

The participating supervisors affirmed the high level of engagement among the students and had high praise for the MGI instructor team as well as Education Specialist, Nalini Ramsawak-Jodha.

MGI’s Acting Executive Director Dr. Ava Maxam said the Institute was gratified at the continuing success of the programme and was eager to renew the partnership with IGT to serve more youth across the region.

“The value of this initiative cannot be overstated,” said Dr. Maxam. “We look forward to an even better offering as the programme grows and as we offer our youth a vital pathway to fulfilling their potential through information technology (IT).”

The programme’s curriculum advisor, Ramsawak-Jodha said it was inspirational to know that the students had gleaned as much as they had from the sessions. “We are proud to be associated with this experience, and we commend IGT for deepening its commitment to ensuring young people receive this critical and early exposure to IT.”

As Caribbean territories continue to strive to secure relevance and sustainability in this data-driven age, IGT has been graciously aiding the cause for the technological empowerment of the region’s youth. This has been witnessed through the company’s provision of fully equipped IGT ASA Centres for students in underserved communities since 2011. The company has also funded numerous IT training opportunities for young people, the most recent being the IGT Coding and Robotics Rock! Camp which has left anticipation on a high for the 2023 hosting.

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Impact Justice Hosts Meeting To Discuss The Development Of Adr In The Region

BRIDGETOWN – September 26th, 2022 – On September 20th and 21st, 2022 the Canadian Government funded Improved Access to Justice in the Caribbean (IMPACT Justice) Project hosted a meeting for select mediators and restorative practices practitioners and trainers to evaluate the Project’s progress with alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in the region. The meeting was held at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Kingston, Jamaica and was attended by ADR practitioners from Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The meeting was opened by Professor Velma Newton, CBE, SCM, Regional Project Director of the IMPACT Justice Project who provided an overview of the Project and mentioned that the meeting in question served to assess the degree of penetration made by mediation and restorative practices in communities. She noted as well that although IMPACT Justice did considerable work in the area of ADR, factors such as COVID-19 slowed its progress in the areas of setting up mediation service points, providing training and working with governments and other interested stakeholders to further develop the area. She therefore looked forward to hearing from the persons gathered what lessons they have learned, what achievements have been made and what ideas they have for the further development of ADR in the region.

Professor Newton then went on to introduce Dr. Christian DaSilva, Counsellor and Head of Development Cooperation for Jamaica and the Bahamas who gave remarks on behalf of the Government of Canada. In his remarks, Dr. DaSilva noted that in Canada, restorative justice has been imbedded in the Canadian justice system for over 40 years, having originated amongst the Canadian First Nations and other indigenous groups. He continued that the principals of restorative justice have been a pillar of Canadian justice reform efforts globally, and through the work of IMPACT Justice, Canada has become a champion for mediation and restorative practices in the region.

The Hon. Delroy Chuck, QC, MP, Minister of Justice, Jamaica also spoke at the opening and painted a promising picture of his vision for ADR in Jamaica. He also thanked the Government of Canada and IMPACT Justice Project for their assistance over the years including more recently, assistance with the development of the Jamaica Mediation Strategy. Minister Chuck also shared that the Ministry of Justice was now in the process of drafting a Mediation Bill which will create a legislative framework for mediation in Jamaica.

Also present at the meeting were Dr. Deborah Duperly-Pinks, Senior International Assistance Officer and Gender Focal Point, Development Cooperation, High Commission of Canada in Jamaica, Ms. Tania Chambers, Consultant and author of the Jamaica Mediation Strategy, and Mr. Peter Bracegirdle, Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, from Ontario, Canada who served as chairperson for the meeting.

During the two-days of discussions, a number of country reports were given on Mediation and Restorative Practices including reports from Restorative Practices Trainers:

Patricia Warner, Senior Education Officer, Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training, Barbados;
Ken Layne, Principal, Daryll Jordan Secondary School, Barbados
Santos Tesecum, Lecturer (retired) Sacred Heart Junior College, Belize;
Ann Hamilton Dopwell, Vice Dean, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, Teacher’s Training Division, St. Vincent and the Grenadines

and mediators:

Miles Weekes, Past Chairman, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Caribbean Branch, Barbados;
Burchell James, President, Jamaica Association of Mediators Ltd., Jamaica;
Terry Ranglin, Mediation Trainer, Jamaica;
Anna-Maria St. Juste, Survivor Support Services Coordinator, the Counselling and Legal Aid Clinic Grenada;
Lauriston Choy, Child Protection Officer, Guyana;
Urban Dolor, Mediation Trainer, St. Lucia; and
Mandella Campbell, Attorney-at-Law and community mediator, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

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News

La Horquetta/Talparo MP Foster Cummings –

MINISTER of Youth Development and National Service Foster Cummings said St Michael’s Home for Boys will be reopened under a new management structure, to cater for 100 vulnerable youngsters.

He was speaking in the budget debate on Monday in the House of Representatives.

He said the facility will be re-purposed and be run in partnership with the Defence Force to accommodate the young men. In a text message to Newsday later, Cummings said, “The St Michael’s School for Boys is being refurbished and will operate as the CHINS (Children in Need of Supervision) facility for boys. The proposed Youth Development Agency of Trinidad and Tobago will manage the facility when completed.”

He also announced that Josephine Shaw Home in Port of Spain will accommodate young women, 18-25, transitioning from community residences, to benefit from holistic development and job placement.

“We are not going to leave our young ladies to end up on the street.”

A transition home will be established for young men, 18-24, and one for young women 18-plus in Sevilla to transition into adulthood and independent living.

Cummings announced a full-time Youth Agricultural Homestead Programme for 200 full-time participants (out of 1,400 applicants), to expand next year to add an extra 200 applicants part-time.

The programme offers full training in crop production and animal husbandry, and then practical training on assigned land, to curb youth unemployment and boost agriculture.

It gives theoretical and practical agricultural training, training in infrastructure development (utilities, starter homes, site preparation and access roads) and business advisory/support.

Participants can practise on a two-acre lot of land and access a $20,000 grant to start up their “21st-century agri enterprises.”

Cummings also promised a programme for individuals who wished to change careers.

He said a Youth Shade House programme would train 100 youngsters at a site in Tucker Valley in collaboration with UWI and a Guyanese institution, as he hailed the Prime Minister for his vision to invest in youth.

“The Shade House Project’s ethos is youth entrepreneurship and will directly address issues of youth employment, underemployment and poverty and provide significant agro-entrepreneurship opportunities and technical assistance with production, harvesting, marketing and market intelligence.”

Cummings promised a Moruga farm school. He said agri-entrepreneurs can also benefit from Nedco’s Business Accelerator Programme.

He said the National Service programme would include MILAT, MYPART and the Civilian Conservation Corps at two sites, respectively in north and south Trinidad.

Speaking to Newsday later, Cummings reckoned some 400 full- and part-time participants would eventually be graduating from the programme each year, such that in a three-year period the country would benefit from 1,200 new young agricultural entrepreneurs.

He announced the Amplify programme run with the National Energy Skills Centre (NESC).

“In the last fiscal, Amplify trained young persons between the ages of 16 and 35 to become skilled music producers and arrangers. Amplify also includes mentorship, entrepreneurship and life-skills training opportunities.”

The NESC also helps run the AllSet Programme for 100 young men and women, 18-35, to learn to drive heavy equipment such as loaders, dump trucks and bulldozers.

“This programme opens a pathway for young people who would not have had access to be trained and certified in this area.

“It gives these young men and women access to specialised equipment, training and expert facilitators, which is not readily available to entrants into the industry.”

Cummings also listed courses in barbering/hairdressing, computer technology skills (mobile application development, web design and coding), and social media/entrepreneurship skills.

He promised residential Youth Development and Apprenticeship Centres, or youth camps for youngsters 17-25, at Persto Praesto, Chatham and El Dorado.

Cummings said the ministry runs six non-residential in Laventille, California, St. James, Malick, Los Bajos and Basilon Street (Port of Spain), with more due at La Horquetta, Point Fortin, Palo Seco and subsequently elsewhere.

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Awe Diamars

ORANJESTAD (AAN): Un anochi informativo ta wordo prepara awe Diamars 4 di October 2022 na Playa.  E ta wordo organiza pa Polis di Bario, y e ta bira un chens unico pa haci pregunta, y haya sa hopi mas.

   E Anochi Informativo aki cu ta ser yama ‘Hunto nos ta forma un bario’, lo ta for di 7:00 pm te cu 9:00 pm na Linear Park na Playa.

   Como invitado special lo bay tin Bureau Slachtofferhulp, FCCA, DIP, Bureau Rampenbestrijding, Bureau City Inspector, y lo papia tambe di Ley di Cacho (duna pa Irene Croes).

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