ETCAY Climax Cleanliness Campaign Certificates 32 Young Volunteers By: Yassah J Wright

In a daring effort to give Paynesville City a befitting facelift, as the festive season fast approaches, and amidst enormous financial constraints, the Economic and Trade Cooperation for African Youth (ETCAY) has climaxed a three-day massive cleaning exercise in the city. ETCAY is a registered African Youth Network constituted by a conglomeration of emerging young leaders across the African continent, representing diverse backgrounds of specialty in the socio-economic and sociopolitical sectors of society.  Under the visionary leadership of ETCAY’s Global President, Alvin K.T.C. Clarke, assisted by the Country Director of the Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), Madam Virtuous Garmai Gbayan, the intense and well-coordinated cleaning campaign held under the Theme: “A Clean Environment Is A Shared Responsibility” brought together over fifty young volunteers mostly women from various parts of the city.  The formation of the Organization was inspired and conceived during the 3rd China–Africa Youth festival held between 20 and 27 June 2018, in China, where 104 Young African leaders representing 53 African Countries and a number of Young Chinese delegates who are at the core of national development, from Key Governmental and Entrepreneurial institutions, most of them Chief Executive officers and Directors of strategic Companies converged to strengthen and foster  China – Africa relations with a running theme, „‟Connecting the dreams of Youth and creating a New Era for China – Africa Relationship”. Rightly so, the dreams of African Youth connected at the right time, right place and so ETCAY was born.   The cleaning-up drive which targeted major streets in Paynesville City, beginning from the densely populated commercial district of Red-light Market to the ELWA Junction commence on Wednesday, December 18, 2024 and was climaxed on Friday, December 20, 2024 with honoring and certification ceremony. At the honoring and certification program held at the GONET Campus situated along S.D. Cooper Road in Paynesville, the group Global President otherwise referred to as Executive Secretary applauded the young volunteers for their dedication during the course of the campaign.  Clarke motivated the young ambassadors of sanitation to collaboratively engage the daunting sanitation challenges the city is faced with by taking decisive action that will provide solution while warning them against being the polluters themselves. According to Clarke, while the three-day cleaning exercise may seems as a “small action” but such initiative will serve as a stimulus that will motivate young people in the city to join in an effort aimed at finding “big solution” to the city sanitation nightmare. He lauded the thirty-two honorees in attendance at the certification ceremony for their act of volunteerism while urging them at the same juncture to effectuate similar initiative in their respective communities. Clarke, who bagged two decades of working experience with young people in initiative that tends to offer mentorship and provide the pathway for inspiring young leaders to attain the full potential to benefit their communities and the country in general. Speaking earlier, ETCAY Country Director and Focal Person,  Virtuous Garmai Gbayan, applauded the young participants for their daring passion and commitment to maintain the “Clean and Green” mantra of Paynesville City.

The 24 –years- old young exuberant woman entreated the volunteers to not be spectators in the change they so desire for their communities and the country, rather she encouraged her peers to stand up and take meaningful action that will bring fruition the desired change for their surroundings. The ETCAY Country Director pledged to remain engage with the volunteers for future initiative while urging them to widen their networking initiative with the aim to incorporate other young people with the passion and desire to give back to their community through volunteerism. Madam Gbayan also extended ETCAY’s appreciation to the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) under the leadership of Mayor Robert S. Bestman II for lending the organization several tricycle, and assisting disposing of garbage generated from the cleaning up exercise. She pledged ETCAY’s willingness to partner with the City Government in ways that will help uplift and sustain the sanitation outlook of the city.  Making guest remark, the Executive Director of Youth GO Green Network Liberia (YUGNET), Sampson God sent Wherdaigar urged the team to galvanize all support around Madam Gbayan while warning them to cultivate a culture of mutual respect. Sampson Wherdaigar, a climate justice advocate himself expressed his organization’s willingness to build a collaborative partnership with ETCAY aimed jointly advocating for a sanitary environment for Paynesville City. He lauded ETCAY Global President for his two-decade long efforts aimed at empowering young people in the city to give back to their community. The Yugnet Liberia heads labeled Clarke as an agent of change and rallied the young volunteers to emulate his towering farsightedness and innovation for the betterment of the city’s youthful population.