Over Five Hundred Young Persons Participate in Youth Fair

Over 500 young persons between the ages of 17 and 29, as well as 18 exhibitors from the parish of St. Ann, participated recently in the 2003 Youth Opportunity Fair, organised by the National Youth Service (NYS) in collaboration with HEART Trust/National Training Agency.
The fair was held at the St. Hilda’s High School auditorium, in Brown’s Town, under the theme, ‘Empowering the nation’s youth through Information’. The main objective of the event was to increase awareness among the youth about the skills needed to access, understand and use career information.
Other objectives were, to equip the youth with the relevant knowledge about the different options and opportunities that exist within their parish and how they might access these; and to provide the young people with a sense of hope.
NYS Programmes Specialist, Heather Lamm, said the fair was aimed at engaging the youth in discussions on the real opportunities that existed in the parish, and exposing them to different career areas, “where they can seek to fulfill their own potential”.
Mrs. Lamm said the ‘break out’ sessions, which were small clinics/workshops, were especially organized as part of the event, to expose the young participants to areas including career planning and goal setting, as well as creative ideas for business plans, and entrepreneurship.
Persons who benefited directly from the event include the young participants, as well as the exhibitors – HEART Trust, Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS), FamPlan, Friends of the Sea, and Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS).
Bachsheba Shaw, a fifth form student from St. Hilda’s High School, said that through her participation in the fair, she was now more aware “of the simple things we do that can have a negative effect on the environment”.
Denrick Tomlinson, a participant from Orange Hill, said he was grateful to be a part of the NYS programme, “which gives young people an opportunity to achieve a worthwhile skill”.
Commenting on the day’s achievements, Carmen Brown-Harper, HEART/ NTA Manager, said the event saw a number of young persons requesting application forms, “and I was pleased that a number of parents turned up for their children”.
The fair was the fifth of 13 to be held across the island.