Country: Commonwealth of Dominica
Person responsible: Chief Cultural Officer
Name of the Project: Dominican Cultural Diversity Through the Eyes of Youth
Foundation – Background:
Dominica has mountains and most times its rugged terrain does not allow persons to traverse from one place to another in one day. Consequently, the aim of this project is to allow the youth to understand the importance of being Dominican. There are a lot of times people don’t know their countries. The reinforced notion of the tradition and culture of the people will be done through inter-island exchanges. Participants will be in camps.
Objectives:
- Participants will be able to better understand their cultural expressions, cultural heritage, and industries.
- Rediscover their communities.
- Be knowledgeable of the backgrounds and dynamics of their peers.
- To be self employed.
- Be better managers.
Target Population: 18 to 30 year olds who are unemployed.
Strategies:
- Give hands-on session through skills training in cuisine, art, tiling, etc.
- The program will run for at least 4 to 6 weeks during the summer.
- The content of the training will include:
° History of the Island
° What is Culture? Why is it important to know about our cultural heritage?
° The Diversity of the cultures and heritage of our culture eg. Cuisine, arts, music, etc.
° Preservation of our heritage
° Management skills: modern technology, etc.
- Volunteers will be available through the Ministries of Community Development and the Youth Division
- It is important to do this project as a direct result of what was learned during the Knowledge Sharing Workshop in Canada.
Responsible entities:
-Youth Division of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports – they already have a program for youth employment, but the input of this proposed project is to incorporate youth from other regions.
Risk: Getting youth to relocate can be very risky, but with determination the project will be workable.
Partnerships:
-Minister for Education, Youth and Sports
-Ministry for Education, Youth and Sports
-Chief Youth Development Officer
-Minister for Community Development
-Media houses on the island, to include electronic and print
-Historians
Discussions will be held with key persons to arrive of other partners, especially in the Private Sector and/or Funding Agency.
The report from the Workshop will be given to the Chief Culture Officer, who will forward it to the Minister.
Some funding could be obtained from the private sector: AT&T, Cable & wireless telephone companies, television companies.
Evaluation and impact assessment indicators: (During the last panel of the Workshop, it was agreed to include this new category in this format)