USAID Launches

USAID Launches At-Risk Youth Initiative to Promote Opportunities for Young People
Santo Domingo Dominican Republic, 10/31/2012

Ambassador of the United States, RaúlYzaguirre, announced the launch of the new Youth Alert program under the auspices of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to promoteopportunities for at-risk Dominican youth between 8 and 25. The implementation of this program is being undertaken with a USAID donation of $20 million dollars (RD$790 million pesos).

This program, part of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), will be carried out by the private company, ENTRENA, SRLalong with other civil society organization, the private sector and in close coordination with the Dominican government.

This initiative will give young people the opportunity to develop their talents and values, be integrated into society with educational and technical training programs and to become productive and positive contributors to society.

In his speech about the Youth Alert program, the Ambassador said that it complements the priorities already outlined in President Danilo Medina’s inaugural speech in which he committed to offering Dominican young people opportunities to begin to make advances in life with “security, freedom, work and personal fulfillment.”

This program, part of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), will be carried out by the private company, ENTRENA, SRLalong with other civil society organization, the private sector and in close coordination with the Dominican government.

TheUSAIDprogram focuses on vulnerable young people who have dropped out of school, committed crimes, been in gangs, teen or young single mothers, young people with disabilities and other similar groups seeking opportunities to re-invent their lives and start over. It will also help HIV positive youth.

It is expected that the impact of the project will reach at least 100,000 young people from the geographic corridor between Santo Domingo to Puerto Plata as well as Haina, Boca Chica and San Francisco de Macorís.

The program also seeks to reduce levels of violence and crime with the establishment of a network of protection and safety, which will be multidisciplinary and focused on sustainable empowerment for groups of young people in vulnerable situations enabling them to be authors and actors in their own self-improvement.

The program will collaborate closely with government ministries and entities that seek to work along these same lines with private companies, non-profit organizations and businesses connected to youth groups, municipalities, churches, families, schools and universities.

The program will work closely in the area of youth at-risk and their relationship with crime and violence. It will provide support to the country’s best practices groups that confront these challenges through an alliance of mechanisms between the private and governmental sectors that seek sustainability after the USAID project is finished.

The name Youth Alert (AlertaJoven) was chosen by a contest called “Choose our Name,” organized by theUSAID and ENTRENA. The winning name was submitted by Génesis Sosa de Los Frailes. Génesis Sosa, a Facebook friend of the US Embassy here spoke at the event, representing Dominican young people. Director of USAID, Alexandria L. Panehal, gave the prize to Génesisand two other finalists, Eduardo Jiminián andAnselmo Jorge. Also, Press Attaché of the Embassy,  JudithRavingave Génesis a t-shirt that said “100,00 y un chin más” (100,000 and tiny bit more) in honor of the number of friends on the US Embassy’s Facebook page.

Others at the event included the Deputy Minister Bilateral Cooperation,  Inocencio Garcia and USAID Director, Alexandria L. Panehaland other Dominican government officials.

The organizing committee of the workshop was comprised of representatives of the MINERD, deputy ministers Minerva Vincent,Víctor Sánchez and Giselle Feliz; fromMEPYD, JefreyLizardo; RadhamésMejía, Political and Social Commitment for Education; Laura Peña, de la Association of Young Businesspeople (ANJE); Aida Consuelo Hernández, Executive VP of EDUCA; Rafael Toribio, expert guest; Ramón Pérez Minaya, expert guest; Ángel Hernández, expert guest; Geli Redondo, Banco Mundial; LissetteNúñez, UNICEF; Marina Taveras, USAID and Diana Sainz, of the European Union.