Roseau, Dominica – The National Youth Council of Dominica (NYCD), the officially recognized umbrella youth organization in the Commonwealth of Dominica, has officially elected a new executive at its biennial General Assembly held on the first Saturday in December with a turnout of approximately 47 youth groups.

The incoming five women, three men executive were voted in on Saturday 5 December 2020, and will serve for the term 2021-2023. President- Elect is Ashma McDougall, who commented on her win by stating that she seeks to uplift youth for development and prosperity in hopes of addressing the “aggravating challenge of how we can do better”.

McDougall, who is a Senior Lecturer of Economics at the Dominica State College, led a campaign with the aim of effecting change for achieving development and empowering youth. She is also an entrepreneur and is currently a PhD candidate, pursuing research in International Development. The President-Elect cited a need to address the development of a unified front for youth through increased engagement, empowerment, and participatory approaches among youth organizations.

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“I am so elated for this opportunity to lead youth effectively into a new era of shaping public dialogue”, McDougall stated. “One of the primary reasons for accepting this nomination stemmed from the absence of robust leadership at the national level for youth. Recognizing the diversity of challenges youth are currently facing – unemployment, underemployment, decreased motivation, block culture, capacity deficiency among youth groups, to name a few, are just a drop in the ocean of issues young people are encountering today.”

The incoming President also noted that the theme chosen to guide this executive’s tenure, “Creating the Vision, Effecting the Change”, reflects the importance to have that “change we deserve for better outcomes among youth.”

“My first call to order is to increase unity among youth groups, to be one voice for advocacy. Some of the principle actors that will drive that goal are the National Digital Directory of Youth Organizations, District Youth Forum and Outreach which will occur in the first quarter of 2021. We are excited to engage with youth across Dominica and I look forward to leading that change effectively”, she ended.

21-year- old Chairperson of the General Assembly, Ashfred Norris, is a youth activist from the community of Wotten Waven with concentration in the area of Climate Change and environmental sustainability. Currently, he serves on the board of Dominica Youth Environment Organization, GEF Small Grants- among others. Norris, who is passionate about his work in youth activism, stated that his aim as Chairman is to “mobilize the young people of Dominica and empower them to get more involved”.

First Vice President of the Council, Phael R. Lander from the community of Kingshill, is a musician, volunteer, pageant chaperone and an advocate for change. Lander, who is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s of Nursing Degree at the All Saints University, stated during his campaign that he hopes to establish a stronger engagement of youth and youth groups. “I am equally happy to serve the youth of Dominica in the capacity in which they have entrusted me.

Lander congratulated the other elected members on the executive on their win and stated, “The camaraderie and unity of this executive is one thing that I look forward to in each meeting that we attend, and I see great promise coming from our term here. The First VP also noted that, “one of my main aims is to meet more of the youth of Dominica and assist them in achieving their goals as individual youth groups and our goals as a council on a whole in order to really bring prosperity to our youth on island.”

Second Vice President, Jorjanna Albert, from the village of Laudat is a graduate of the Convent High School and is now a Double Major at the Dominica State College studying Accounts and Business, and also operates a small business, Jay’s Faces.

Jonathan Jones won the position of Publicity Coordinator, and comes from the community of Canefield. Jones is a youth activist and has served the Council previously as its Administrative Coordinator.  Currently he is Dominica’s Representative for the Commonwealth Students’ Association and an NGO Analyst for the Commonwealth Youth Council and remarked that increasing youth inclusion and advocacy are some of his key goals on the council throughout his stint.

Assistant-Secretary Treasurer, Annia Peters from the community of Woodfordhill noted that she has always been a hard worker, and desires to assist others who are in need within her community and by extension, her country. As a result, she is the Founder of Priceless Charity Foundation and is excited for the opportunity to have greater access to support youth nationally.

Other members of the Executive include Courtney McDonald and Jonell Charles who were both elected as committee members.

The role of the NYCD is inclusive of developing youth empowerment programs; youth representation; advocacy; lobbying for youth development and building the capacity of Dominica’s youth to become model citizens in the future. We extend our congratulations and well wishes to the New Executive!

If you require any further information please feel free to contact the representatives listed below. We look forward to serving you and the youth of dominica  as we strive to highlight the contributions and achievement of Dominican youth and in keeping with our universal motto of “Youth Representing Youth, Positively!”