A Youth Group Directory
Just now you heard about the Department of Youth Services’ updated website launch. A feature on that site is the Youth Group Directory tab. It is a new online service that the DYS is offering to youth groups from across Belize to help raise their profile and connect them with young people in the area. According to CARICOM Youth Ambassador Kris Miller, old data shows that there are roughly three hundred and fifty-one youth groups in Belize but they want to have better accountability of these groups and keep track of those that are active. Miller tells us more.
Kris Miller
Kris Miller, CARICOM Youth Ambassador
“One of the main reasons is for awareness and for us to know how many youth groups are active and are here in Belize. So, I think it is a good initiative for us to do to help the youth groups. For example, if you are in Corozal for the summer and have nothing to do, you can go online and see all the youth groups in Corozal. They will be separated in advocacy or what area you want to do. We know people give donations to youth group or NGOs. If they want to find a youth group in their area and some groups are not as big as others. So, maybe we will know about Rotaract but not a smaller group. So, if you go on the site and select the category you will find a smaller group that is in need of the fund as well. What you will see right now when you go on the website is a registration for the youth club. So, we are asking all youth club to go on the website and go to the widget that marks youth service directory and register their youth group. After you register your youth group, it goes directly to the youth directory and it will open as a Google map. So, you will see the country – a map of Belize and you will see a bunch of icons on it. Now if you go on the legend. The icons are for the different youth groups. One of the good features on it is that you can get direction how to reach the youth group. A new thing we are trying to do is that we will get a notification of when you sign up. We will be creating a certificate of something just like you get when you register your business. We will be doing one just like that with our seal and everything. So, you can keep a record of your certificate that you have signed up to youth directory as well.”
