Young persons from the community of Mt. Horne, St Andrew, who recently completed Level 2 Caribbean Vocational Qualifications (CVQ) in General Construction, will now undergo an internship.
It will entail the building of a playground and bus shed for residents of Mt. Horne, St. Andrew.
In 2019, 25 young persons from the community graduated from the 11-month training, which covered general construction, hospitality arts and other areas, under the Division of Youth Development’s project, Actively Committed Empowered (A.C.E). Project A.C.E is funded by the Government of Grenada and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and is part of the ASPIRE project.
On Saturday, Dec. 12, a team comprising personnel from the Division of Youth Development, Ministry of Social Development, Project A.C.E interns and Andre Belfon Contractors, visited the proposed site for the playground and bus shed. It was an opportunity to meet and assess plans for the project.
Member of Parliament for St. Andrew North West and resident of Mt. Horne, Hon. Delma Thomas, said the project will assist in bringing the community together in a safe, stable environment.
She said, “We know of a number of issues and challenges that confront this area and so the project really brings hope for these young people. Being able to assist them, we are hoping that following the completion of the project that these young people, who are being trained, will be able to find gainful employment across Grenada.
ASPIRE Project Coordinator, Lindonna Hillaire-Marshall, said the project seeks to assist young people with rehabilitation and preparation for the world of work.
“This marks the end of project A.C.E, where candidates were to decide on a community project, as a means of giving back and it will also serve as a reminder for the candidates, of their accomplishments,” Hillaire-Marshall said.
Project ACE targets juveniles, youth-at-risk, their families and communities and is designed to build resilience against factors impacting vulnerable segments of this population.
During Training, special emphasis is placed on life skills, literacy, numeracy, skills and small business training. Project Officer of A.C.E, Johnny Calliste, said the community project particularly involves those who completed general construction CVQ Level 2.
He said, “The participants met last year and decided that they would like to construct a kid’s playground for the children of Mt. Horne, a bus shed and street signs in and around the community of Mt. Horne.”
The training facilitator for the general construction CVQ was ABC Contractors Training Center and Consultancy. Representative of Andre Belfon Contractors, Andre Belfon, said the project will be done in two phases, beginning January 2021 with the construction of the bus shed.
He said, “We would first have to do some excavation, leveling, filling; some retaining walls, after which we will install the site furniture such as the swings.”
U.S. $12,000 has been allocated for the project.
