Young people encouraged to get involved in governance
Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth
and Information, Alando Terrelonge, is encouraging more young people to get
involved in the governance of the country to ensure a better future for themselves
and the generation of tomorrow.
“Getting involved in causes and in politics is getting
involved in your own lives. The youth of Jamaica, the youth across the world
must recognise that by participating, they are ensuring their own future and
that by not participating, you diminish the quality of life that you and your
children will live,” he said.
He was speaking to some 300 high-school and university
students at an event to mark United Nations Day 2019 at the Courtleigh
Auditorium in St Andrew, on Thursday, October 24.
The event, under the theme, ‘I am the SDGs’,
facilitated dialogue on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and how young
people can lead actions to achieve the targets and, by extension, the National
Development Plan, Vision 2030 Jamaica.
The SDGs are a collection of 17 global goals set by
the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 that are to be attained by 2030.
They cover social and economic development issues, including poverty, hunger,
health, education, global warming, gender equality, water, sanitation, energy,
urbanisation, environment and social justice.
Terrelonge pointed out that young people have an
important role in ensuring that the goals are attained.
“You determine the government that you get; you
determine if you will get a government that is focused on promoting the SDGs,”
he said.