Guyanese to participate in President Obama’s youth programme

Four young Guyanese leaders have been selected to participate in President Barack Obama’s 2016 Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Fellows Programme in the United States later this year.

The initiative will see some 250 young leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean travelling to the United States for an exchange programme that will involve internships and skills-building workshops. The programme will begin on October 5 in Dallas, Texas, and culminate with a summit in Washington, DC, in early November. The US President launched YLAI to build linkages between young leaders across the hemisphere and to expand opportunities for emerging entrepreneurs and civil society leaders.

Over the five-week programme, the participants will learn and share their experiences in start-ups, small businesses, Non-Governmental Organisations, and similar entities in cities throughout the United States and in partnership with community groups and American universities.

The participants will further develop their business or social venture plans through an entrepreneurship curriculum and workshops, and by working alongside their American counterparts.

The 2016 YLAI Professional Fellows selection team received nearly 4000 applications. The 250 selected business and social entrepreneurs represent 35 countries throughout Lat

in America and the Caribbean and have demonstrated the energy of this generation to build stronger, more prosperous, and more secure communities throughout the hemisphere.

Their areas of interest include agriculture, clean energy, consulting, e-commerce, education, entrepreneurship development and support, food and beverage, food security, health care, hospitality, LGBTI rights, marketing and branding, mobile applications, and women and youth empowerment.

Among the Guyanese participants are: Dason Anthony, one of the owners of 592 Dresses, founded in July of last year. 592 Dresses assists boutiques and local designers to sell, market and advertise their products through its online marketplace. Judason Bess, the co-owner and manager of The Farmacy, which focuses on making agriculture and food production more sustainable.

The third person is Abbigale Loncke, who has spent most of her adult life helping those in need with the creation of Community Health Care – an agency that delivers health care for the elderly, sick, disabled and children in the comfort of their homes. She also conducts training for women who are in need of employment and second chances to take up roles as care-givers. The final person is Shaunda Yarde, who founded Coconut Grove with her grandmother’s recipe in 2013; she uses fresh local ingredients to make a culturally rooted product, Golden Crunch Coconut Biscuits.

The biscuits were part of Moray House’s 2015 Christmas Parcel and Guyana’s 2016 Golden Jubilee welcome package. YLAI, one of four programmes within the Young Leaders Initiatives, is part of President Obama’s commitment to empowering young people around the world to ensure they have the tools, skills and networks to tackle our shared global challenges.