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Young??Camp Destiny campers attend the closing ceremony, last week, at the NCST’s summer camp held at the St. Stephen’s Primary School in Black Rock. (A.Miller/BGIS)??

Approximately 100 young Barbadians enjoyed seven weeks of wonder at the recently concluded Camp Destiny, hosted by the National Council for Science and Technology (NCST).

Held at the St. Stephen’s Primary School in Black Rock, St. Michael, the camp drew to a close last Friday, with demonstrations, skits and displays presented by the children.

Minister of Commerce and Trade, Senator Haynesley Benn, told the audience of parents and guardians that they should take note of the areas in which their children showed an interest and offer them encouragement.?? He observed that the offering was even better than the last camp and said he was "very impressed" with the work the campers and coordinators had done.

Senator Benn noted that science and technology continued to be of great importance to the Ministry and reminded the gathering that financial support was available for innovators within the field.

"We met with representatives from the Barbados Coalition of Service Industries and we spoke about some of the things that we want to see done in the area of [Information Communication Technology].?? I want to say that there are funds available in the Ministry where young persons who are innovators …should be able, through the National Council for Science and Technology, to tap into those funds…

"I want to invite [young entrepreneurs] to touch base with the [NCST]," the Commerce Minister said, while offering congratulations to the NCST for a job well done with the camp.??

There was also more than one million dollars available in a fund to be used to support Information and Communication Technology, Mr. Benn said, adding that

??"…we were able, over the past year, to do between 10 and 12 projects, ranging from $10 000 to close to $100 000".????

The Minister also expressed hope that the camp, now in its third year, could cater to even more children next year.

"…The year before, we had limited funds and we were able to get the nod of the Minister of Finance to give us more funds this year so that we could do more.?? Seeing the success of this camp, I am anxious to see an increase next year," he said.

nekaelia.hutchinson@barbados.gov.bb

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