Wyllie calls on governments and organisations to ‘listen to the youth’

Sharlene Wyllie, a Kicking AIDS Out! and Caribbean Healthy Lifestyle Programme (C-HLP) Youth Leader, recently attended the CARICOM, Health and Family Life Education Working Group Meeting as a youth representative.{{more}}

Wyllie was invited to this meeting because of her involvement with the Trinidad and Tobago Alliance for Sport and Physical Education (TTASPE) as a Certified Youth Leader in her community of Mahoe Village.

The teenager was first introduced to C-HLP through her involvement with her community netball team and since then has become an active youth leader in both C-HLP and the Kicking AIDS Out! Caribbean initiative, leading peer workshops and activities that encourage open dialogue on healthy lifestyles and HIV/AIDS.

“C-HLP and Kicking AIDS Out! are programs like no other. They foster capacity building among youth and encourage positive energy. I have gotten the opportunity to travel, share experiences and ideas with other Caribbean youth. I have learned how easy and effective it is to use everyday games to share knowledge on the ills that affect our society,” expressed Wyllie.

“Presenting to the CARICOM Health and Family Life Working Group was a great opportunity. I feel it is necessary for government and organizations to understand the needs of young people, and that can only happen if you listen to the youth,” voiced Wyllie as she revisited her experience. “We as youth have lots of ideas and can also be used as champions to encourage other youth to be better.”

The working group meeting was successful in establishing a four year plan to implement a Health and Family Life Education initiative and a Program for Out of School Youth. A recommendation that came from the meeting was to develop a regional health policy that will encompass all health related topics.

“I think my presentation allows CARICOM and other stakeholders to gather information about C-HLP and the Kicking AIDS Out! Caribbean initiative,” explained Wyllie. “It is my hope that the ideas and plans that were discussed at the meeting come to reality and the various partners and stakeholders will do their part to get relevant governments on board.”

The Kicking AIDS Out! Caribbean programme and the Caribbean Healthy Lifestyle programme are youth- led initiatives which are supported through a network of partners, including the Trinidad and Tobago Alliance for Sport and Physical Education, the Commonwealth Games of Canada and the Australian Sports Commission. Currently, there are over 190 active youths taking a lead role through Kicking AIDS Out! initiatives throughout the Caribbean.