Kingston, 18 November 2019 – The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, has announced the start of a new programme to assist adolescent fathers to live up to their responsibilities.

Minister Grange made the announcement in her message to mark International Men’s Day, being observed on Tuesday, 19 November 2019.

The new programme — to be implemented by the Women’s Centre Foundation of Jamaica, which runs the Programme for Adolescent Mothers — is called the Young Fathers Jamaica Initiative.

Minister Grange said the new initiative is designed to “assist adolescent fathers to become outstanding dads.”

Minister Grange also announced the start of the #MentorMe2020 programme which will target at-risk young men.

According to Minister Grange, #MentorMe2020 — to be led by the Bureau of Gender Affairs — will see “outstanding men helping high school boys to become outstanding and balanced men of the future.”

International Men’s Day is being observed under the theme “Building Strong Men through Health and Wellness: Balance di ting”.

The Gender Minister said her Ministry will be leading targeted interventions across the country to address some of the Health and Wellness issues that men face everyday. She urged Jamaican men to strive to achieve the right balance in every area of their lives:

“Everyday men across Jamaica make tremendous sacrifices for their families, our communities and our nation. Today, we acknowledge all that you do for us and express our gratitude.

But we know that in your quest to ensure that the rest of us are okay, you oftentimes don’t pay enough attention to your own wellbeing; and that is why for this year’s celebration we focus on Building Strong Men through Health and Wellness to Balance di Ting.”

Among the activities to mark International Men’s Day is a conference focussing on mental health and wellness at the Jamaica Conference Centre beginning at 9:00am.

Minister Grange has urged all Jamaicans to celebrate the men in their lives.

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