Build Back Equal Project enhances Social and Behavioural Change Skills in SVG
At least 20 professionals from Healthcare and Criminal Justice organizations across St. Vincent and the Grenadines have enhanced skills in Social and Behaviour Change. They gained these skills and competencies through an interactive two-day workshop where they learned to design culturally appropriate, gender-sensitive tools and strategies in support of achieving Gender Equality, across Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
The workshop was funded in part by the Government of Canada and facilitated by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, in partnership with the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
The Honourable Kaschacka Cupid, Minister of Youth, Sports, Culture and the Creative Industries, who delivered the Feature Address at the workshop’s formal launch “reaffirmed” the government’s commitment to the youth of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines whom he described as “the most vital resource the nation possesses”.
He remarked: “We know that to truly achieve prosperity, we must address the complex challenges that prevent our youth from realizing their full potential…it requires a profound and sustained investment in their behaviour, their health and their future agency”.
TruTrang Nguyen, Second Secretary (Development), Global Affairs Canada underscored the commitment of the Government of Canada to Gender Equality in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the need for the continued partnership between Government, civil society and community leaders across Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
She commented: “Gender Equality, and an end to violence, can only be achieved when we all seek to treat each other equally, recognize situations of inequality that need to be addressed, and are sensitive to the needs of the most vulnerable.”
De-Jane Gibbons, Liaison Officer for UNFPA in Barbados and OECS, shared UNFPA’s global goal of three zeros; zero unmet need for family planning, zero preventable maternal deaths and zero gender-based violence and harmful practices. She stressed the need for the government’s continued commitment to health services and their delivery.
She called on the Government to formally adopt the Standards for Quality Healthcare Services for Adolescents in St. Vincent and the Grenadines as well as the Sexual and Reproductive Health Policy. . Their approval will be part of a broader initiative to ensure that “every Vincentian has the knowledge, agency and freedom to realize their full sexual and reproductive rights…meaningfully contributing to the development of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines”.
Also in attendance at the Opening Ceremony of the Workshop were the Honourable Shevern John, Minister of Social Welfare and Community Empowerment, Disaster Management and National Heritage and Honourable Phillip Jackson, Minister of Education, Vocational Training, Innovation and Digital Transformation.