Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr George Norton; Minister of Public Affairs, Dawn Hastings-Williams; and Minister within the Ministry of Natural Resources, Simona Broomes were among 10 Guyanese awarded by the organisation IChange Nations, for their instrumental roles influencing change in their communities and the country.
Tony Games, Patsy Fredricks, George Simon, Robert Frederick Allicock, Lorraine
Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock during brief remarks at the IChange Nations Sydney Allicock Global Humanitarian Award ceremony at the Umana Yana
Pierre, Laura George and Ovid Williams also received awards, along with three other awardees based in the United States – Dr Charles Kinuthia, Margaret Ellis and Erik Kudlis.
According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the award is entitled the “IChange Nations Sydney Allicock Global Humanitarian Award” in honour of Minister Allicock’s commitment to empowering the Indigenous people of Guyana, and his role in ensuring that standards of education and community tourism in hinterland communities are strengthened.
During brief remarks at the award ceremony hosted at the Umana Yana, Minister Allicock noted the significance of such an event which honours those who would have worked hard to effect change within their communities and the country.
Ovid Williams receiving his award from Ambassador Clyde Rivers, Founder and President of IChange Nations
“…We have a lot of persons right here in Guyana who have been making some significant contributions and are not recognised; we need to move away from that mindset. People need to be recognised for their hard work,” he said.
He pointed out that it was particularly significant for Indigenous peoples, as their contributions were now being acknowledged.
The selection process was not a simple one, according to the Minister, since there were many persons who were deserving of the award. He urged those awarded to keep their shoulders to the wheel and to continue to engender the development of the nation.
Ambassador Clyde Rivers, Founder and President of IChange Nations, noted that the organisation was honoured to have the award in Minister Allicock’s name. He remarked that the organisation was especially impressed with the role the Minister has been playing in the development of the Indigenous community.
Ambassador Rivers also presented a special award to one of Guyana’s Youth
Ministers Sydney Allicock, Dawn Hastings-Williams and Simona Broomes; Ambassador Clyde Rivers, Founder and President of IChange Nations, along with other awardees during the IChange Nations Sydney Allicock Global Humanitarian Award ceremony at the Umana Yana
Ambassadors, Dr Astell Collins for his outstanding role in the area of leadership.
IChange Nations is an internationally recognised organisation which identifies individuals for outstanding humanitarian work in their respective countries and areas of service.
