Kingston, August 17 – The Honourable Olivia Grange, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport and Chairman of the Jamaica National Commission for UNESCO has announced that the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation has won the prestigious UNESCO Prize for Girls’ and Women’s Education. 

The US$50,000 prize honours the outstanding contribution of individuals, institutions and organisations engaged in girls’ and women’s education and showcases successful projects that improve and promote the educational prospects of girls and women and in turn, the quality of their lives. 

Minister Grange said the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation, which is an agency of the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, “won the prize for its tremendous work to help adolescent mothers to continue their education.”

 The Women’s Centre helps pregnant teenagers to continue their education through day schools at its locations across the country. 

 Minister Grange said:

“We are very proud to be receiving this award for education at the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation.  The Women’s Centre was started 40 years ago with this mandate — to help pregnant teenagers to continue their education thereby increasing their job prospects and equipping them with the tools to look after their children and to become good parents. I congratulate the team at the Women’s Centre, past and present, who have through kindness, love and care given pregnant teenagers this opportunity to continue their education and to build successful lives.  This award is a well-deserved recognition of the hard work over the last four decades.”

 The Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation is one of two recipients of the award for 2018. 

 The prize, which is funded by the Government of the People’s Republic of China, was first awarded by UNESCO in 2016.

 The prize will be presented during the 205^th Session of the UNESCO Executive Board in Paris, France in October.

-END-