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Contact:
John Emmanuel
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UWI Professor Karl Theodore delivers his lecture at the
NIC Conference Room |
Tuesday, April 06, 2004 - Head of the Economics Department at the St.
Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies, Professor Karl Theodore
has made an urgent call for greater emphasis to be placed on the needs of young
persons, if there are to take up the challenge of ensuring the region’s survival
in the not too distant future.
Delivering a lecture on Monday, April 5 as part of the highpoint of activities
in observance of the 25th Anniversary of the National Insurance Corporation
(NIC), Professor Theodore expressed the view that at present, Caribbean youth
lack an appreciation of the future, seeing it as bleak. Much of that pervading
pessimism he noted was in large measure created by the older generation, who had
failed to paint a feasible and attractive environment, in which young people
could shoulder their responsibilities.
He explained that it was not good enough for regional states to have selected
Ministries of Youth Affairs only, to look after young people’s interests,
suggesting that other Ministries should get involve. “When we sit to plan in the
Ministries of Finance and Planning, central to what we are doing has to be the
needs of the young people of the region”, Professor Theodore said, adding, “this
message must reach the youth, indicating to them that we are prepared to look
after you and build you up, because if we fail to send that message out, then
they are not going to accept any responsibility to keep this region alive”.
The current level of unemployment in the region and its impact on Caribbean
youth, the Professor told his audience must receive urgent attention, with the
need for regional governments to make a serious commitment to lower the
unemployment rate. The scourge of HIV/AIDS, he indicated needed to be tackled
head on, with social security bodies like the NIC playing a vital role, as the
needs and problems of young people needed to take centre stage in national
planning.
Anything threatening the economy and the society, he lamented was the business
of social security institutions. Says he: “We cannot wait around saying let the
government programmes deal with that or someone else will do it. This is a
question of leadership and I think it’s for the voice of social security
organizations to make the case that young people’s needs and problems have to
take centre stage.” The long serving UWI professor spoke on the topic: The
social and health behaviour of our younger population in particular, has serious
cost implications for our social security scheme: Is this a reality?
The NIC as part of its anniversary celebrations will also hold an Awards Dinner
on Thursday night, April 8th, 2004 at the Sandals Grande in Rodney Bay, at which
time staff members who have served for the past 25 years will be recognized
together with first Director, Mr. Francis Compton.
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