Chairman of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Rt. Hon. Perry Christie, Prime Minister of the Bahamas, on Thursday underscored the need for investing in youth, a critical component of the Region’s human capital.

Delivering his address to the opening ceremony of the 26thIntersessional CARICOM Summit, underway in Nassau, The Bahamas, Prime Minister Christie stressed, “if we do not address the challenges faced by our young people; we do so at our grave peril.”

He referenced several renowned CARICOM personalities including Bob Marley, the Mighty Sparrow, Sir Sidney Poitier, Sir Garfield Sobers, Lenny Kravitz, Rihanna, Usain Bolt, The West Indies Cricket Team, Derek Walcott, George Lamming, V.S. Naipaul, Eric Williams, Sir Arthur Lewis, C.L.R. James and Rex Nettleford, who gained Regional and international acclaim for excelling in music, sport and academia. These personalities collectively demonstrated that the Region had the depth and diversity of human capital needed to drive our societies forward, he stated.

Time was optimal, Prime Minister Christie said, for action toward the implementation of the ideas drawn from the Region’s youth, which are contained in the Declaration of Paramaribo on the future of youth in the Caribbean.

In that Declaration we agreed to support actions aimed at empowering and developing youth in the region.  We have done the research. We have the views of the youth. Let us take the necessary action to deliver on the provision of Paramaribo and ensure that tomorrow’s leaders are academically, socially and mentally ready for building on the policies of yesteryear,” Prime Minister Christie stated.

“We have done the research. We have the views of the youth. Let us take the necessary action to deliver on the provision of Paramaribo and ensure that tomorrow’s leaders are academically, socially and mentally ready for building on the policies of yesteryear,” Prime Minister Christie