Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence (Jamaica)

Deadline: 23-Sep-22

The Youth Innovation Center is inviting nominations for its Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence.

The Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards salutes young persons, between the ages of 15 and 29, who have distinguished themselves in various sectors, including: journalism/e-journalism, entrepreneurship/social entrepreneurship, agriculture, national leadership, new media, academics, art and culture, sports, environmental protection, nation building, innovation in science & technology and youth development.

Award Criteria

The Prime Minister of Jamaica, the Most Honourable Andrew Michael Holness, O.N., M.P., is inviting nominations for the Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence in the following categories:

• Agriculture & Agro-Processing
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Agriculture and Agro-Processing. S/he must:
    • Own AND/OR operate an agro-business endeavour which incorporates the use of new technology in the advancement of  Agriculture & Agro – Processing AND/OR
    • Have advanced scientific research AND/OR development in agriculture AND/OR
    • Have incorporated innovation in the development of a new product
•  Entrepreneurship / Social Entrepreneurship
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Entrepreneurship. S/he must:
    • Operate a profitable, innovative, registered business venture
    • Generate levels of direct and indirect employment AND/OR
    • Operate a business that has contributed significant social and economic value at community AND>OR national level.
• In the Field of Social Entrepreneurship, nominee must:
  • Operate a social enterprise that has contributed significant social and economic value at community and/or national level.
  • Be affecting change, developing and implementing solutions at the community level
  • Be serving a key population as outlined by the National Youth Policy
• Journalism / E-Journalism
  • The nominee should have produced a high standard of journalism. S/he must:
    • Have consistently produced high-quality content and in-depth coverage of national, regional AND/OR international issues
    • Have produced a body of work that has had a national impact, and/or led to the wellbeing of people involved.
    • Have received a regional or international award in recognition of his/her journalistic endeavours
•  New Media – Social Media / Youtuber/ Bloggers/ Vloggers
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of New Media. S/he must:
    • Have consistently produced high-quality, innovative, creative and relevant content of national, regional or international issues.
    • Have consistently produced work that has a real and tangible impact on the target audience
    • Have produced a body of work that has had a national impact, and/orled to the wellbeing of people involved.
    • Have received a regional or international award in recognition of his/her new media endeavours.
    • Media Presence (Internet/Print/Radio/Social Media)
    • Instagram
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
•  Arts and Culture
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Arts and Culture. S/he must:
    • Have gained local AND/OR international recognition evidenced by competition results, awards, reviews or placement.
    • Have featured prominently in a minimum of two critically acclaimed exhibitions or productions
    • Have used their talent, skill and platform, in a non-commercial manner, to foster the development of their subject area.
•  Music
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Music. S/he must:
    • Have displayed Excellence in the Promotion of Jamaican Culture through music
    • Be considered an outstanding performer or creator or musical works evidence by local AND/OR international awards, competition results, reviews or chart standings
    • Have a reputable catalogue free of violet and discriminatory material (at time of award consideration)
•  National Leadership
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Leadership. S/he must:
    • Demonstrated an active leadership history at the national or international level
    • Demonstrated an active leadership history in relation to a priority group of the National Youth Policy
    • Served at the specified level for a minimum of 3years and made significant and demonstrable impact over the period.
•  Environmental Protection
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Environmental protection AND/OR Climate Change and Adaptation. S/he must:
    • Have proven him/herself to be an influential and effective environmental steward/leader.
    • Have gained international/ AND/OR national recognition as an environmental advocate.
    • For organisations, a minimum of 80% of the membership should be between 15 and 29 years old.
• Sports
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Sport. S/he must:
    • Have performed meritoriously at the Junior and/ or senior level in international competition and have achieved a world-leading performance AND/OR
    • Have attained a consistent world ranking (1-10) in his/her sport AND/OR
    • Have achieved a world-leading performance.
    • Performance and ranking must be current: active participation within the past 2 years
• Nation Building
  • The nominee must have demonstrated outstanding and consistent voluntary service relevant to the development of youth and their community. S/he must:
    • Have positively impacted youth at the community level
    • Have outstanding and consistent voluntary service over at least 5 years.
    • Have given service which is not related to mandatory obligations for work or school.
•  Academics
  • The nominee must display outstanding achievement in the field of Academic Study. S/he must:
    • Achieved a top three regional ranking at CAPE and CSEC levels AND/OR
    • Have completed a Bachelor’s Degree and attained a First Class Honours and maintained an A+ academic average throughout the course of study
    • Post-graduate nominees must have completed a thesis with distinction and/or published in an internationally recognised journal
    • Application must be for the last level of education completed
• Innovation in Science & Technology
  • The nominee must distinguish him/herself in the field of Innovation in Science and Technology. S/he must:
    • Proven to be innovative in providing a scientific or technological solution to a problem.
    • Gained national/international recognition in the field and/ or participated in a minimum of two critically acclaimed exhibitions.
    • Advanced research in science and/or technology.
•  Youth Development
  • The Individual or organization must:
    • Have been involved in youth work for over a period of five years.
    • Have significantly impacted youth from one of the priority groups of the National Youth Policy.
    • Be able to demonstrate that their work has been acknowledged as a best practice.
    • For Youth Serving Organizations and/or Youth Development Practitioners.
• Prime Minister’s Special Award For Excellence
  • The recipientof the award may be an individual or an organization that would have excelled exceptionally in their field of work or study which the Prime Minister deems worthy of national recognition as they embody the true meaning of resilience, innovation and excellence.
  • Individual or organization must:
    • Have demonstrated locally or internationally significant contribution/s to their society.
    • Not be a recipient of a Prime Minister’s National Youth Award for Excellence.

Eligibility Criteria

To be considered eligible, a nominee must:

• Be a Jamaican national or a naturalized citizen (at least 3 years)
• Must be between the ages of 15-29 year old (must be on or before the deadline of the application)
• Be of upstanding character
• Must meet the award criteria

For more information, visit https://www.youthjamaica.com/content/nomination-criteria