Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) CONTENTS Page(s) LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF FIGURES vii ABBREVIATIONS AND ACROYNMS viii-ix EXECUTIVE SUMMARY x-xxvi INTRODUCTION ] 1-10 1. THE GLOBAL AND REGIONAL CONTEXT FOR YOUTH ] 11-17 DEVELOPMENT ] Historical Context ] 11-14 Current Global and Regional Challenges ] 14-17 2. YOUTH AND THE CARICOM SINGLE MARKET AND ] 18-28 ECONOMY (CSME) ] CSME: History and Promise ] 18-21 CSME: Threat or Opportunity ] 21-22 Youth Knowledge and Perceptions of the ] Integration Movement ] 22-25 Citizenship and Regional Identity ` ] 25 -27 The Reality of Life in the Caribbean for Caribbean Youth ] 27-28 Conclusion ] 28-29 3. THE SITUATION OF CARIBBEAN ADOLESCENTS AND ] 30-89 YOUTH ] Adolescent and Youth Dreams and Aspirations ] 31-32 Education ] 33 Adolescents, Youth and Education: An Overview ] 33 Poverty ] 33-34 i Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) Page(s) Attrition from the Education System ] 34 Gender Issues ] 35-36 Expenditure on Education ] 36 Participation and Performance at the Secondary ] 37-41 and Tertiary Levels Access to Secondary Education ] 41-42 Tertiary Level Education ] 42-43 Male Under-performance ] 43-44 Adolescent and Youth Perspectives on Education ] 44-46 Teaching and Leadership in the Education System ] 46-47 ` Youth, Labour and Employment ] 47-50 School and Employment in the OECS ] 50-52 Adolescents, Youth and Migration ] 52-55 Rethinking the Brain Drain ] 55 Insularity, Xenophobia and Institutionalised ] 56-58 Discrimination: The Case of Haiti Adolescent and Youth Health and Well-Being ] 59 Adolescent and Youth Health ] 59-61 Mental Health ] 61-62 Drug Use and Abuse ] 62-63 Sexual Reproductive Health ] 63-65 Adolescents, Youth, Crime and Violence ] 66 Crime and Violence – The Caribbean Experience ] 66-68 Crime and Violence – A Developmental Issue ] 68-71 ii Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) Page(s) An Unsafe World ] 71-72 Sports and Recreation ] 73 The State of Sport in CARICOM ] 73-75 The Value of Sport ] 75-79 Caribbean Culture and Identity ] 80 Youth and Caribbean Culture ] 79-82 External Challenges to Cultural Values ] 82-83 Youth Culture ] 83-84 Youth, Creativity and Cultural Industry ] 84-87 Development ] The Cross-cutting Nature of Culture ] 87-88 4. YOUTH GOVERNANCE AND PARTICIPATION ] 90-106 The Right to Participate ] 90-92 Governance, Politics and Youth Participation ] 92-94 The Regional Context for Youth Governance ] 94-95 CYAP ] 95-96 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) ] 96-97 Commonwealth Plan of Action for Youth ] Empowerment (PAYE) ] 97 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ] 97-98 The National Context for Youth Governance ] 98 Relevance, Functionality and Responsiveness ] of Youth Governance Structures ] 99 iii Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) Page(s) Responses of DYAs ] 99-101 Responses of Youth Networks ] 101 National Governance ] 101-104 Summary ] 104-106 5. YOUTH AND CARIBBEAN DEVELOPMENT: ] 107-126 THE COST OF NOT INVESTING IN YOUTH ] Understanding Adolescence and Youth ] 107-108 Extending the Liminal ] 108 The Peer Group ] 109 Personhood, Sexuality and Identity ] 109-110 Those Who Fail ] 110-112 Creativity ] 112 Agents of Change ] 112 A Context of Adolescent and Youth Risk in the ] Caribbean ] 113 Recognise the Contribution of Youth ] 114-116 Invest More in the Youth ] 116-117 Education ] 117-119 Employment ] 119-121 Health ] 121-124 Crime and Violence ] 124-125 The Cost-Benefit of Investing ] 125-126 iv Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) Page(s) 6. TOWARDS A NEW ERA OF PARTNERSHIP, POLICY AND ] 127-134 PARTICIPATION Recommendations ] 128 Changing the Mindset ] 128-129 The CSME ] 129-130 Youth Governance Structures ] 130-131 Human Resource Development ] 131-132 Sports and Culture ] 132-133 CARICOM Youth Development Goals ] 133-134 REFERENCES ] 135-143 ANNEXES: I MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION II THE COMMISSION’S RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ☼☼☼ Report Cover designed in-house at the CARICOM Secretariat Graphic on Chapter dividers designed by Mr. Seon Thompson, CSEC/CXC award- winning, young artist, Trinidad and Tobago v Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) LIST OF TABLES Page(s) Table 1: CSEC % Pass Rate by Sex (Math) 1997 and 2009 37 Table 2: CSEC % Pass Rate by Sex (English) 1997 and 2009 39 Table 3: Economic Contribution of Diasporic Carnivals in 2000 83 Table 4: Caribbean Festival Tourism: Comparative Economic 85 Impact in 2000 Table 5: The Cost of Early School Leaving (2004) 118 Table 6: The Cost of Early School Leaving by Gender (2004) 118 Table 7: The Cost of Youth Unemployment 120 Table 8: The Cost of Adolescent Pregnancy 121 Table 9: The Cost of Youth HIV and AIDS 123 Table 10: The Cost of Youth Crime 124 vi Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) LIST OF FIGURES Page(s) Figure 1: CARICOM Youth Population- 2020 Projections 3 Figure 2: CARICOM Youth Population- 2035 Projections 4 Figure 3: CSME- Expected Benefits 19 Figure 4: CSEC % Pass Rate (Math) 1997 and 2009 38 Figure 5: CSEC % Pass Rate (English) 1997 and 2009 40 Figure 6: UWI On-Campus Registrations 1980 – 2005 43 Figure 7: Youth Unemployment Rate by Gender (2000) 48 Figure 8: Prosecuted Crimes in Jamaica by Age Group 70 As A Share of All Crimes (1988) Figure 9: Adolescents and Youth Arrested for Selected Major 71 Crimes in Jamaica (2008) vii Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS CAPE Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination CAREC Caribbean Epidemiology Centre CARICOM Caribbean Community CCJ Caribbean Court of Justice CCHD CARICOM Commission on Health and Development CCYD CARICOM Commission on Youth Development CDB Caribbean Development Bank CICAD Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission COHSOD Council for Human and Social Development CONSLE Council for National Security and Law Enforcement COTED Council for Trade and Economic Development CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child CROSQ CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality CSEC Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate CSME CARICOM Single Market and Economy CVQ CARICOM Vocational Qualification CXC Caribbean Examinations Council CYAs CARICOM Youth Ambassadors CYAP CARICOM Youth Ambassador Programme CYDGs CARICOM Youth Development Goals CYP Commonwealth Youth Programme DYAs Departments of Youth Affairs ECLAC Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean EU European Union GDP Gross Domestic Product HFLE Health and Family Life Education HRD Human Resource Development ICT Information and Communication Technologies IDB Inter-American Development Bank ILO International Labour Organization IMF International Monetary Fund viii Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) IT Information Technology MDGs Millennium Development Goals MVA Motor Vehicle Accidents NYCs National Youth Councils NYP National Youth Policy OECS Organization of Eastern Caribbean States PAHO Pan American Health Organization PANCAP Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS PAYE Commonwealth Plan of Action for Youth Empowerment PPP Purchasing Power Parity RSYD Regional Strategy for Youth Development RYC Regional Youth Caucus STIs Sexually Transmitted Infections UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNFPA United Nations Population Fund UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund UTECH University of Technology UWI University of the West Indies WHO World Health Organization Y-AP Youth-Adult Partnership ☼☼ ☼ ix Draft Report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Twenty-Seventh Meeting of CARICOM Heads of Government in July 2006, mandated the establishment of a Commission on Youth Development which was tasked with undertaking “a full scale analysis of the challenges and opportunities for youth in the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME); and making recommendations to improve their well-being and empowerment”. The following beliefs underpinned the Commission’s approach to its mandate: a) regional integration holds the key to the optimal development of the small developing countries of the Community and the regional citizenry; b) the CSME, as a social institution, is heavily dependent on the knowledge, skills, competencies, values and attitudes of young people for successful outcomes; c) young people are an under-utilised resource for the development of Caribbean communities, countries and the Region. The Report argues that young people comprise the sector of the population best positioned by virtue of their creative potential to play the leading role in responding to the challenges of globalisation and, therefore, to the demands of regional integration and the CSME. However, despite various efforts to tap their participation, not only do they know little of the CSME, their commitment to the region is overshadowed by the multiplicity of problems with which they are confronted, including half-hearted attempts at meaningful governance structures. In outlining what needs to be done, the Report calls for four critical actions: understanding the transitional character of adolescents and youth; tangible recognition of their contribution to the Region; more investment in them for greater returns to both country and Region; and a radical shift towards partnering with them to tackle many of the burning issues confronting us. The Commission placed priority on capturing the views of young people in and out of school and