St David's Day UN Gold Star Awards ceremony

5 Mar 2010

United Nations and Wales’ First Minister presents UN Gold Star awards to Welsh and African communities for their work in tackling poverty

UN Gold Star Award winners with First Minister Carwyn Jones and UNDP representative Berta Pesti

Three Welsh and three African communities were honoured this St. David’s Day with the award of a United Nations Gold Star for their contribution towards making poverty history, building friendships and broadening horizons between Wales and Africa. These communities are part of a growing network of over 100 links operating between Wales and Africa.

More information about the event and the awards: http://goldstarcommunities.webspring.org.uk/10722

The volunteer-run community partnerships - between Hay-on-Wye in Powys and Timbuktu in Mali, Llanfyllin in Montgomeryshire and Kamuli in Northern Uganda, and Pontypridd in Rhondda Cynon Taff and Mbale in Eastern Uganda – are supported by the Wales Africa Community Links project of the Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA), with funding from the Welsh Assembly Government’s Wales for Africa scheme.

While their projects may sound like achievements of great international agencies, these links are rooted in friendship between ordinary people in Welsh and African communities who are exchanging skills, knowledge and understanding. The Hay Timbuktu link, for example, has set up projects which have seen antenatal clinic attendance triple in the last 12 months, hungry children fed through a market garden scheme, and a trade agreement between Welsh and African artisans bringing sustainable income to Tuareg people hit by impacts of a tourism slump, security and climate change.

The UN Gold Star Awards event that took place in the Senedd celebrated the achievements of volunteers and community groups who are building Wales’ relations with the world, in pursuit of sustainable development and overcoming poverty and injustice.

The awards were presented by First Minister of Wales Carwyn Jones AM and guest UN representative, Ms Berta Pesti. Each award was assessed by an independent panel of international development experts with the endorsement of the UN. Five awards were presented to three communities for their impact on youth, health, livelihoods and the environment in the communities involved:

Llanfyllin and Kamuli, Uganda – UN Youth Gold Star

Teacher Barbara Maycock receives UN Gold Star award with Ugandan partner Emmanuel Maraka

Hay-on-Wye and Timbuktu, Mali – UN Health Gold Star

GP Julie Grigg and Malian partner M. Hamoudi Ben Ali receive their UN Gold Star award for their work in health

Hay-on-Wye and Timbuktu, Mali – UN Livelihoods Gold Star

Mayor of Hay - Fiona Howard and Malian partner M. Hamoudi Ben Ali receive their UN Gold Star award

Pontypridd and Mbale - UN Livelihoods Gold Star

Howard Smith and Apollo Mwenyi recieve their UN Gold Star for their work in creating livelihoods

Pontypridd and Mbale - UN Environment Gold Star

Hilary Thomas and Apollo Mwenyi receive their UN Gold Star for their work on the environment

Carwyn Jones, First Minister of Wales, said: "It is fitting that on our tenth St. David’s Day since devolution, we have been able to celebrate Wales’ achievements as an outward looking, confident nation; a nation of strong communities, learning from others - and making a difference in the world that would make St. David proud. It has been humbling to see the innovation of these Wales-Africa community links, and the support they have from the Welsh people, and I hope to reflect this support through strengthening our Wales-Africa programme over the year ahead, towards a ‘new decade’ of Welsh internationalism."

Apollo Mwenyi, visiting the Senedd from Uganda as a guest of PONT, the Pontypridd-Mbale Link, said:"Our link with Wales means a great deal, and this award means a great deal, to our people in Mbale. It shows that through extending the hands of friendship, we can change the world for the better – and importantly that as Africans we can be not just recipients of aid or charity, but friends and equal partners in building a future for all of our children."

Julie Grigg, GP from Hay-on-Wye, said: "Getting involved with Timbuktu has been a life changing experience. This award is a huge inspiration for people in both Hay and Timbuktu, as recognition of everyone’s efforts, what we’ve been able to learn from Africa, and also the difference we’ve been able to make. Our link belongs to the whole community, so I hope we’ll be able to display the award proudly in Hay. I also hope many people, such as Hay Festival goers, will see it and be inspired to set up more links with Africa!"