The Community Development Fund of the Ministry of Community Development formally handed over a bus to the YMCA and one to the National Centre for Persons With Disabilities (NCPD) at a ceremony held at the Preysal Community Centre in Preysal, Couva on December 18.
The event got underway with welcome remarks from Herold Gopaul, programme director of the CDF. This was followed by acting Permanent Secretary Donna Ferraz who stressed the value of partnerships saying the ministry must partner with others to fulfil its mandate of poverty alleviation. She went on to commend both organisations for their services and urged them to continue moving ahead.
Representing the YMCA was Jennifer Ramdial-Reifer who said although the programmes initially targeted the youth, the organsisation now wanted to set the standard for senior citizen centres as well. She said the YMCA was in the process of rebuilding through mentorship programmes which link the youth with the elderly.
Ramdial-Reifer said the newly aquired 24-seater bus will be used to transport 120 elderly people to various activities including aqua aerobics, Tai Chi classes, computer literacy courses and grow box demonstrations. Dr Beverly Beckles of the NCPD said the donated bus would help advance the work of the NCPD's catering service and will be well cared for.. She pointed out that the NCPD also offered its students vocational training and in some cases, job placement.
In delivering the feature address, Minister of Community Development Winston "Gypsy" Peters said the bus handover was not a one-off investment and that the ministry would continue to support programmes that ensured all sectors of society had equal access to opportunities to develop skills for self-sufficiency and empowerment. Formal agreements were then signed by both parties and the two vehicles were handed over to the YMCA and the NCPD.