Forging greater partnerships and networks

JAMAICA IS pleased to welcome the Kiwanis Eastern Canada and Caribbean (EC&C) District to our shores for the staging of the annual convention.

Through your vision and objective of world improvement, our present and future generations are assured of being impacted by the goodwill and work of Kiwanis in becoming effective and forward-thinking leaders in their communities and on the international stage.

For decades, the work of Kiwanis in Jamaica has embodied the principles and practices of humanitarian outreach, building one child, one person, one community at a time and thereby certainly creating a ripple effect that will impact social and community development.

This year’s convention will once again set the stage for all stakeholders, in particular, those involved in business, community, youth empowerment and development, to forge greater partnerships and networks. It will also provide leadership training for those who will be elevated to the forefront of this noble organisation of service and volunteerism and reward those who have toiled selflessly in the past.

Most importantly, it will create over four days a perfect environment for the sharing of critical ideas on the way forward in and around our respective Caribbean countries. As regional neighbours, we share so many of the same characteristics, yet each of us has our own fair share of unique qualities and differences in the social, economic and developmental landscape of our countries.

DEVELOPMENT TEMPLATE

Kiwanis has created a template for the development of youth at as early as the elementary level with the K-Kids Club all the way through to the tertiary level and beyond via the Circle K and Aktion clubs. They have also been instrumental in the rebirth and restoration of many youths who had either given up on or lost their way in life. Many of those youths have not only been rescued, but are now helping to rehabilitate others in a similar situation.

I implore all concerned to look at workable and feasible solutions geared towards the youth and focus attention on the possibilities not yet fully explored.

Let me express my commendation and appreciation for the work of the Kiwanis EC&C District and the wider Kiwanis community. I anticipate the positive influence, fellowship and results this year’s convention will produce on behalf of our nation’s youths.

ANDREW HOLNESS ON, MP Prime Minister