This week we celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the formation of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States and we also commemorate several significant milestones in the integration of the OECS: the 5th Anniversary of the Revised Treaty of Basseterre, the 16th Anniversary of the formation of ECTEL, 34th Anniversary of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority, 49th Anniversary of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and the 33rd Anniversary of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank.
The celebration of these accomplishments is an appropriate occasion to consider the future and to ask ourselves what do we need to do to ensure that go faster, build stronger and benefit better. It is a good time to define the things that we need to do today to better secure tomorrow and do better than we did yesterday. In any consideration of these possibilities, there is one thing that stands out. It is not possible to speak about the future without talking about the condition of our youth. It is widely recognized that the youth are the future but how can they inherit tomorrow if they are not prepared today to assume this challenge?
Today I would like to speak to the vision of youth empowerment that is a necessary and urgent condition for the fulfillment of a prosperous, sustainable single OECS Space.
