Shamim Mohammed says the Fiji delegation for PYASC numbers 19 and brings together a range of diverse youth from her country that differs ethnically, religiously and socially.
But sport, she says, is paving the way for what promises to be an exciting conference in Noumea, New Caledonia, from December 2 to 7, 2013.
“Sport has a big role in bringing people together in the Pacific Islands.
“No matter where you are, youth find a way to get out and play sport, whether they have the equipment or not, they are resourceful and energetic,” Mohammed says.
Fiji is reknowned for its love of all sport with football, rugby union, cricket, volleyball and swimming high up on the list of pastimes for most youth.
But despite this, Shamim Mohammed says there are always key challenges faced by young people in Fiji.
“Raising funds is always a challenge and our young people have to be innovative in how they go about this.
“There is a cultural barrier to overcome as a lot of youth find it difficult to open up about these types of challenges and its therefore hard to know what is going on with an individual,” she says.
Shamim Mohammed says the French Government has been particularly helpful.
“This project is about social inclusion and the French government has sponsored seven people to attend.
“We’ve drawn our delegation from all over Fiji – some of the participants are from the north, the west, different social backgrounds and some have never travelled outside of Fiji, some have.
“PYASC is a very important learning opportunity for all youth and we’ve looked to include some of the young people within the Ministry to be part of our team.
“These Youth officers have just joined our department and it provides them with an experience and incentive that the project continues,” Shamim Mohammed.
The Pacific Youth and Sports Conference (PYASC) aims to address significant social issues facing young Pacific Islanders. It is a tool for youth to develop and pursue social projects in their communities.”
The New Caledonia Government, Secretariat of the Pacific Community and the Oceania Football Confederation joined forces to host the Pacific Youth and Sports Conference in Noumea, New Caledonia, December 2-7, 2013.
The aim is to gather around 1,000 young people from sport and youth organisations, governments and international institutions from the Pacific region to exchange experiences, encourage debate and discuss potential new ideas.
Shamim Mohammed has worked through the ranks in the Ministry of Youth since 1993 to the current position of Senior Youth Officer whereby she is responsible for the controlling, administration, monitoring and supervision of the overall functions, activities and performance of the Central Division.
Shamim’s role is to further ensure the effective and timely delivery of support mechanisms to manage youth development programmes and services for the division as per the corporate plan of the Ministry of Youth & Sport.

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