Eight young people to take part in UN Youth Assembly |24 July 2017
A group of eight young Seychellois will be taking part in this year’s United Nations Youth Assembly to take place in New York, United States of America from August 9-12.
The group will, alongside with other young people from all corners of the world, take part in various projects, different seminars, youth forums and debates relating to the sustainable development goals (SDG).
This will not just be an opportunity for the young delegates to express their views and share their ideas but also a chance for Seychelles as a nation to make its voice heard to make an impact.
The eight young people making the trip are Kelly Mothé, Anastasia Pantazopoulou, Victoria Gao, Sanjna Shah, Curtis Alvis, Bhavini Raghvani, Annarose Clarisse and Raghavi Naidu.
During a short ceremony on Friday afternoon at the Ministry of Education hall, the group, who is currently undergoing intense preparations and working on their projects and presentations, was officially presented and recognised. This was in the presence of Education and Human Resource Minister Joël Morgan and other officials from his ministry.
Sanjna Shah was not present as she is out of the country.
Victoria Gao, one of the members of the delegation, applauded all the initiatives and progress the young people of Seychelles have made and are still making to promote the SDGs.
She also applauded the active involvement and commitment of UN Youth Seychelles to raise awareness of and push for the promotion of the SDGs through different sustainable activities in schools and the community through different youth movements and civil society bodies.
“With the active involvement of UN Youth Seychelles we are not only making a local effort but a global one too,” Ms Gao noted.
Only one person, Annarose Clarisse, represented Seychelles at and took part in the UN Youth Assembly last year but this year a group of eight young people will take part in the different activities organised by the world body.
Ms Gao said this “showcases the tremendous progress Seychelles has made to raise awareness on the SDGs and generate interests of the young people”.
UNDP programme manager Roland Alcindor also addressed the group and everyone present. He reaffirmed the UN body’s support and noted that the UN has long recognised that the imagination, ideals and energy of young people are vital to the continued development of our society.
He retraced several UN initiatives to encourage and empower youth and youth leaders globally, raise their awareness on the SDGs and encourage their involvement, actions and contributions in their society.
“As the ones representing Seychelles at this year’s UN Assembly we count on you to be the champions of the SDGs and to carry them into the future. We expect you to grow into committed and responsible leaders and to come back full of new ideas and initiatives to motivate your peers to engage in positive activities that would benefit other youth and the people of Seychelles,” Mr Alcindor said.
He congratulated Ms Clarisse for all her effort, collaborations with the SNYC and other youth bodies and her initiatives through the UN Youth Seychelles organisation she set up here on her return from last year’s assembly to raise awareness and promote the SDGs among young people. He called on the group to network with other world youth bodies during the assembly.
For her part, Ms Clarisse, the president of UN Youth Seychelles, thanked the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development, the SNYC, the different organisations and their families for believing in them and supporting them to be able to make it to New York.
“There is a lot to achieve and learn. You will be overwhelmed but it is an experience of a life time which is worth all our efforts and energy,” she told the group.
SNYC chief executive Alvin Laurence also had words of encouragement for the group and assured them of the youth body’s continued support and encouragement.
Two youth leaders currently on internship with the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development who took part in last year’s assembly also addressed the gathering and shared their experience.
A the end of the presentation, Minister Morgan presented the group with a miniature national flag each to raise high during all the activities of the assembly.