PM Youth Award Rescheduled To Early Next Year

Nominations for the Prime Minister’s Youth Award for Excellence have been extended to Monday, December 31, with the award ceremony rescheduled for early 2013.

Minister of Youth and Culture, Hon. Lisa Hanna, made the disclosure on November 28, during a regional leadership seminar at the Rockfort Vocational Training Centre in Kingston.

The award function was initially set for Sunday, December 2 at the end of Youth Month, and as part of ‘Jamaica 50’ celebrations.

Ms. Hanna said the decision to extend the nominations was taken following a review of the planning process. She said that the new deadline will allow for more exemplary young people, from all over the island, to be recommended for the prestigious award.

“I wanted to make sure that every young person in Jamaica, those persons at the HEART Trust/NTA, those persons in rural communities, those persons with disabilities, has a chance to submit a nomination or have someone nominate them. So, if you know of anyone, who you believe is a leader in this course, across the country, in your own community, (nominate them),” she urged.

Nomination forms can be collected from the Ministry of Youth and Culture, 4-6 Trafalgar Road, Kingston 5; the National Centre for Youth Development (NCYD) information centres in St. Ann, St. Mary, St. James, Portmore, Kingston and Portland; and NCYD Youth Empowerment Offices island-wide.

Nomination forms can also be downloaded at http://bit.ly/pmyouthawardsform.

Additionally, applicants can drop off their nominations at the Ministry’s office; and at National Youth Service (NYS) offices island-wide.

The annual Prime Minister’s Youth Award for Excellence is co-ordinated by the NCYD, an agency of the Ministry of Youth and Culture.

The award is the highest honour given to young Jamaicans ages 15 and 24, who have achieved national and international distinction in the areas of: academics, agriculture, arts and culture, entrepreneurship, international achievement, leadership, journalism, sports, and service to their communities.

The award aims to motivate each individual recipient through positive re-enforcement and recognition, and also seeks to optimise their growth and development.