Remarks by GraceKennedy Limited. at the
Community Service Awards Ceremony for Child Month 2005
read by Mr. Ward Mills at Alhambra Inn, on Friday, 27 May 2005

Greetings

It is an honour for me to be here today to bring greetings on behalf of GraceKennedy's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and Child Month Patron Douglas Orane.

It is heart warming to hear of the wonderful activities in which you are all involved. You, who despite your youth, are already contributing to the welfare of the nation and playing a vital role in ensuring a brighter future for your generation.

This contrasts sharply with the reports of horrible incidents of indiscipline, violence, even murder coming out of some of our schools.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child reaffirms the fact that children, because of their vulnerability, need special care and protection, and emphasizes that the primary caring and protective responsibilities rest with the family. At the same time the Charter points out that the state has an obligation to ensure the child's survival and development.

The Charter sees the responsibility for the nurturing of our children as resting on two equally important platforms - the family/parents and the state. As Jamaicans we must begin to look closely at what this means for all of us.

We must do whatever we can to foster the healthy physical and spiritual growth of our children - those within our families or with whom we have contact. But we must also insist that our government plays its part in ensuring that the care, protection and development of our children is one of its highest priorities.

It is indeed time for soul-searching. It is time for a reassessment of the environment in which large numbers of our children are being brought up.

What kind of examples are being set for them by their parents, the adults around them and the society in general? What kind of support system do they have access to?

These are some of the questions we must contemplate.

Serious reassessment must take place so that a more positive and wholesome path can be charted for us as Jamaicans to move forward. We must also create a social and cultural environment which can begin to fulfill the aspirations of all Jamaicans for a better quality of life and for the opportunities which will allow them to fulfill their dreams and realize their potential.

We must nurture and love our children, we must show them appreciation and respect and generally provide a positive environment for them to grow into confident, worthwhile citizens.

Indeed the parents, guardians and teachers of these young people being honoured today are setting an example. They clearly understand the importance of proper parenting. They have learnt how to provide their children with a secure, loving environment and how to guide them to be positive human beings.

So today we celebrate these young persons as well as the adults who have nurtured them and guided them so well.

In closing, I must thank fellow sponsors of child month activities and the members of the National Child Month Committee, who against many odds, continue to make Child Month a significant event in the national calendar and continue to underline the importance of our children and their needs.