Despite the nation's growing crime rate and other social ills, Social Development Minister Dr Amery Browne is confident that this generation is not lost.
He said the majority of the people in the country represented that which was positive. He added, however, that it was the few bad apples that were spoiling the bunch.
Browne made the comment yesterday, during the launch of the Scotiabank National Productivity Forum held at University of the West Indies (UWI) Institute for Critical Thinking, St Augustine.
The forum which is being hosted by American Chamber of T&T (AmCham) and the Institute of Critical Thinking seeks to engage tertiary and secondary students in discussions that will encourage critical thinking on the topic of productivity.
"It is nonsense to continue to believe that this generation is cursed, lazy and cold-blooded killers," Browne said.
This group of people who were involved in crime represents the minority but because some people were perpetuating the notion that all were bad, the minority has become the majority, he added.
However, Browne advised the students at the forum that they were the right-thinking ones and they were the majority despite what was being said about young people.
He called on them to become more passionate towards being productive citizens and utilise the nation's assets and resources to their advantage.
?Youth Forum
?Twenty schools have been chosen on a first-come basis and will participate in five zones, and at each round a school will represent the perspective of the Government, private sector, civil society and labour. Four teams will be chosen for the finals to be held on April 10, 2010, and develop position paper to present to the Government of T&T with recommendations on how each sector contributes to enhanced productivity and sustainable national competitiveness.
