Dear Editor,
The year 2007 is the year of the African Renaissance and fittingly, in March, we will commemorate the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the British and American Slave Trade.
African Renaissance Magazine
In March, the African Guyanese Renaissance Magazine will be launched . It will be the voice of the African quest for social renewal, political self determination, economic equity and wealth creation in our communities. This launch will be one of several manifestations of The African Renaissance this year.
Leadership
Also in March, 50 young people will be awarded Leadership Scholarships from the African Renaissance and ACDA. Application forms can be uplifted from ACDA in Thomas Lands from 15 February 2007. Those selected will be notified by March 15 and classes will start in April.
In April, there will be an African Youth Leadership Conference.
Culture
Culturally, every week, beginning from next Monday , February 13 , The African Renaissance and ACDA will be making available to the public, lessons on African culture and history. The first lesson will be about IMHOTEP, the world’s first multi-genius.
Anyone interested in a copy of this lesson can contact ACDA at 225-8420
The African Business Forum
To signify the importance of economic self determination, self reliance and self employment, the African Business Forum will also be launched in March. It will include one of the Caribbean’s most elite economists as well as individuals from the Diaspora. This Forum will also have as its institutional infrastructure, a Youth Business Council, a Women’s Business Council, Sectoral Councils and a Secretariat for providing business services to the African community. We are working on establishing an African Development Fund before the year is over.
Emancipation Day Activities
In August, when we will celebrate Emancipation Day, we will have an African Community Leadership Awards Event to honour those among us and in the African Guyanese Diaspora who quietly provide leadership in our communities. They give selflessly without notice. It is time we honour our own heroes.
African Business Conference and Expo
In August, we will also have an African Business Conference and a Black Expo as part of a full fledged Emancipation Month programme which will also include an Emancipation Youth Festival.
Community Development
Key to The African Renaissance is a relentless focus on our Youth, the recapturing of the importance of a sound education and the re-dignifying of the teaching profession.
We plan to nurture and create youth leaders who are committed to self determination, self employment, respect for all cultures, justice, equity and the rule of law. We are also committed to fighting the scourge of HIV/AIDS in our communities.
Since late October 2006, the African Renaissance in collaboration with the African Cultural and Development Association (Sister Violet Jean-Baptiste, Brother Egerton Cooke, Brother Tacuma Ogunseye and others) have been working in partnership with Toucan (Sister Yvette Herod, Brother Nkofi, Brother Deon Abrams) and spirited individuals from the Buxton -Friendship Community, at home and abroad, to create “a sustainable and transferable model of a hope” through poverty alleviation and Community/Leadership Develop-ment. Over time, this will result in the reduction of poverty in our communities and social inequality in Guyana.
The overarching goal of the relationship and partnership is to significantly improve the socio-economic conditions of vulnerable young people, aged 7 to 24 in the Buxton- Friendship area through creation of a Community Centre, a Business Centre and a host of activities to promote leadership development, self pride, self reliance and good citizenry.
It is within the general context of The African Renaissance focusing on our Youth and our Villages, that the community of Buxton-Friendship, with its recently developed stigma as a nesting place for armed criminals and freedom fighters, has been chosen for this project?
Many problems have been targeted in this “model of hope” programme and in bringing the African Renaissance to African communities. Key problems include (i)) job creation to address poverty alleviation and social inequality; (ii) community education and activities to promote good citizenry (iii) activities to occupy the tremendous amount of spare time on the hands of young people in the area covered. (iv) the involvement of young females in all activities to ensure gender parity; (v) activities to encourage disciple and pride (vi) HIV/AIDS and teenage pregnancy education and counseling (vii) volunteerism for ensuring a clean healthy environment and (viii) youth advocacy in the community through leadership development.
The approach by The African Renaissance, ACDA and Toucan 11 Club is based on achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Seven of the eight MDGs are targeted in this partnership and there are four major activities that comprise the project
1. The building of a permanent Community and Recreational Centre for the Toucan Club.
2. The establishment of a Business Centre to encourage entrepreneurship and job creation
3. Presentation of courses in Leadership, Small Business Management, HIV/AIDS Counseling and Life Cycle Management., Life Skills and Volunteerism.
4. Sports and recreational activities including dance and karate along with many other sporting and cultural activities.
Three months into the partnership, the response by the community and the results have been simply amazing.
We plan to open savings accounts for each of our young people and to teach them thrift and entrepreneurship.
The biggest challenge facing the partnership is the raising of funds to build a community/recreational centre that will have the dual purpose of a disaster recovery centre in times of floods. An application was made to the European Union sponsored Guyana Micro Projects Programme (GMMP) for a grant to build this Centre. The concept document has been accepted and the Buxton-Friendship Community and the village Diaspora are all geared up to provide in-kind support and their own financial contributions to accomplish this task. This centre which will be built to the standards of a disaster recovery site will cost approximately G$12 million dollars so that in times of flooding, it could safely accommodate large numbers of affected citizens.
Much thanks must be given to the Trustees of the Brethren Church for providing a very large plot of land that will be the site of the Community Centre/Disaster Recovery Building.
The African Renaissance will become involved with ACDA and other like minded African organizations and friends from the diplomatic and international community in helping to improve African villages. First, we have to develop “success models” such as the one we are implementing in the Buxton-Friendship community. These village partnerships will be the basis of the Emancipation Day Youth Festival and Community Leadership Awards Programmes later this year.
We hope to receive contact names from individuals in other villages who are willing to participate in these models. We hope to have these partnerships with six communities this year and to rapidly expand next year. Planning and resource acquisition are essential to our success and we have to “do it right”
Critical to this is the desire of communities to help themselves and of supportive groups who realize the future lies in the development of our young people as servant leaders who are respectful of their heritage and the heritage of others and whom are disciplined, hardworking, courageous and who want to be self reliant.
We are thankful to those organizations who have stepped forward to provide support and contributions to this effort and are especially grateful for the tireless souls like Sister Yvette who have made tremendous sacrifices
for the development of their communities and for the young people in their midst.
The Church
Later this month, The African Renaissance hopes to reach out to our Churches. We firmly believe the Church has a critical role to play in the re-generation of values in the African Community. We believe every Church should have a library. Every Church should be involved in literacy. Every Church should have a counseling capacity. Every Church should facilitate economic growth. Every Church should nurture strong community leaders who are grounded in faith and in African culture. The two are not opposites. Culture is broader than religion which like language, values, music, art, literature combine to create shared values and beliefs.
The African Renaissance looks forward to working for shared governance now that the Church is aware of the pernicious nature of the Westminster model through their casino gambling experience.
Libraries
Our library drive has started and we look forward to your “spirit” of renewal in the African community.
Yours faithfully,
Eric Phillips
