KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange is calling on the country’s men to participate in the #mentorMe2020 Male Mentorship Programme which is aimed at connecting boys at the secondary school level with positive male role models.

Through the initiative, being spearheaded by the Bureau of Gender Affairs (BGA), boys are expected to benefit from support and guidance from male mentors to develop self-efficacy and other life skills, and improve their academic performance and interpersonal relationship with their peers, teachers and family members.

Grange said 15 boys from Haile Selassie and St Andrew Technical high schools have been selected to participate in the first cohort of the programme, and 15 suitable male mentors identified to coach and empower them.

“Join in on this initiative and contact the BGA to become a mentor. We need as much support as possible,” she said.

The minister was addressing the sitting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, November 17, where she gave an update on mentorMe2020 and the Young Fathers Jamaica Initiative, launched at the International Men’s Day (IMD) forum in 2019.

Regarding the Young Fathers Jamaica Initiative, she told the House that it is designed to assist young fathers, aged 15 to 29, to improve their parenting roles and responsibilities, develop life skills and improve the interpersonal relationship between themselves and their immediate family members.

“I can proudly state that we had consultation meetings with relevant stakeholders and 20 young fathers were selected to participate in the first cohort of the programme,” Grange said.

Further updates on the initiatives will be provided at the 2020 IMD public forum today at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel, New Kingston, she said.

The event will include presentations on prostate cancer awareness, mental health and wellness, and healthy sexual lifestyle practices.

It will also include the Outstanding Father Awards to honour men who are exemplary in their roles as fathers, mentors and role models; and the soft launch of the Exemplary Male Role Models 2021 calendar, which is an initiative of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in collaboration with the BGA.

Grange said that the IMD theme, ‘A Man’s Health is a Man’s Wealth: Men and Healthy Lifestyle Practices during the Pandemic’, places focus on men’s health and well-being – social, emotional, physical and spiritual.