[www.inewsguyana.com] – The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Secretariat and the CPA North West Province will jointly hold the Sixth Commonwealth Youth Parliament in Mmabatho, South Africa, between November 2 – 8, 2014. The CYP is an annual event held in a different country of the Commonwealth each year.
This year Guyana will be sending two representatives: Brian Andre Smith and Dana King-Waithe. It is anticipated that some 80 to 90 young people from across the Commonwealth will participate in the event which will also be attended by a number of young Members of Parliament under the age of 35 from across the Commonwealth.
Guyana’s two representatives met, today, with the House Speaker, Raphael Trotman, the two chief whips, Gail Teixeira and Amna Ally and the Alliance For Changes’ Cathy Hughes who congratulated them on being selected and offered advice on how the representatives could make their trip productive and successful.
Smith says that he hopes this experience will help him to better understand the parliamentary process and is looking forward to interacting with young people from across the Commonwealth with a view to returning home with information that will assist the National Assembly in creating its own Youth Parliament.
Meanwhile, King-Waithe disclosed that she is looking forward to participating in debates on issues relating to democracy, youth development and unemployment. She said she is also eager to learn, from youths in other Commonwealth countries, best practices that can be used in Guyana.
The overall goal of the Youth Parliament is to strengthen the democratic process in the Commonwealth by deepening understanding of parliamentary democracy among the participants and providing a forum for them to express their ideas, concerns and expectations.
