Three Gibraltarian delegates participated in the second Overseas Territories Youth Summit (OTYS) on Thursday in London.
Frank Devincenzi, Johan Perez and James Vinet were selected to represent Gibraltar at the summit, which was held at BVI House, the British Virigin Island’s Government Office in London.
Delegates from Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands and Montserrat also participated in the Youth Summit.
“The purpose of the OTYS is to encourage youth participation in debates and discussions pertaining to issues affecting the Overseas Territories,” said a statement from the Government.
“It provides the opportunity for cross-collaboration and relationship building between the Overseas Territories, empowering young people to partake in critical thinking and offer innovative ideas.”
The session was chaired by the British Virgin Islands, who are this year’s chair of the United Kingdom Overseas Territories Association (UKOTA).
The OTYS debated three policy areas: neurodiversity, disability and impairment in education, LGBTQ+ rights and representation, and immigration and migration.
At the conclusion of the day- long affair, the Youth Summit delegates adopted a joint communique to be presented to their respective Territory governments.
Tracy Bradshaw, the BVI’s UK Representative and Chair of UKOTA, welcomed the delegates, with opening remarks also provided by officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
The Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Joseph Garcia said that the day was a fantastic opportunity for young people, not just from Gibraltar but from around the world, to engage in the democratic and diplomatic processes.
“Each earned their place through a competitive essay submission and have today offered valuable contributions to discussions on the theme of “Diversity and Inclusion”,” he said.
“Events such as these are a key element of Gibraltar’s active work in diplomatic engagement with our fellow Overseas Territories, with the ideas and voices of the next generation at the helm.”
Here we publish the winning essays by Francis Devincenzi and Johan Perez, the official Gibraltar delegates to the UKOTA Summit.
We also publish the winning essay for the UK Youth Parliament in the House of Commons, written by James Vinet, who will represent Gibraltar at this event.
