Guyana has been ranked 10th among 107 countries for youth well-being in the first Commonwealth Youth Development Index (YDI), which was recently released. The YDI was designed to measure the development of youths between the ages of 15 and 24 based on: education, health and well-being, employment, and political and civic participation in Commonwealth countries.
Guyana was ranked 31 overall in the development index.
In the other sub-categories, Guyana was ranked 21 (education), 18 (employment) and 27 (political participation).
Australia, Canada and New Zealand topped the YDI. Guyana’s ranking has placed it in the medium category of youth development, making the country one of the highest-ranked nations in the Caribbean region.
The report stated that youth development is related to, but not heavily dependent on income per capita. This means that low-income countries can make significant advances in youth development by providing young people with opportunities to seek quality education and training, and to participate in their country’s social, political, and economic life.
Significant strides
Guyana has been making significant strides in this area, and has recorded many success stories, where hundreds of youths are trained annually in various fields.
The Board of Industrial Training (BIT) is one institution that has been involved in the training of young people.
Government also continues to invest in many other youth-related projects that have seen optimum participation.
Additionally, many Guyanese youths have been sent overseas to study in various fields at the post-graduate, master’s and doctorate levels, improving the country’s human resource capacity.
The Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry, with the support of international agencies, is also currently looking to redraft a new youth policy that will help to further strengthen youth development.
