PENANG, 1 December 2015 - "I am truly grateful to Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) and those who have assisted me in shaping me into who I am today," those were the words in the email of the newly-elected Chairperson of the Commonwealth Young Council (CYC) Kishva Ambigapathy, sent from Malta, the venue of the 24th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

According to Kishva, this success was truly meaningful as he has been given the mandate from 1.2 billion young individuals from the Commonwealth countries to lead the young generation from various youth organisations.

"This success is not solely mine, as it is also the success for my country Malaysia, for it being honoured and acknowledged at the world stage," Kishva said.

The 25 year-old youth who had completed his Bachelor’s Engineering degree in Electrical and Electronics from USM in 2013 and is currently studying for his Master’s in Science (M.Sc) in United Kingdom, was also a former student from Penang Free School, and he has many ideas to be implemented throughout his term in leading the CYC.

"Our agenda comprised of voicing out on various issues, from climate change, youth entrepreneurship, job opportunities, violence from extremist groups and also on social solidarity."More than 200 youths have gathered in Malta to present their views in various issues and to propose action plans to deal with those issues, with priority given on transforming innovations into actions and expansion" said Kishva.

Added Kishva, this success too has come with even more opportunities to explore a much broader scope of knowledge and expertise in Malaysia, especially in facing the various global changes.

 
"Malaysia also has its own fundamental strength and capabilities in the aspect of youth development, which can be shared with the Commonwealth countries and the world over," stated Kishva.

Meanwhile, in his speech to the heads of government here, Kishva emphasised his desire in being the new head of CYC, in hoping to mobilise the Commonwealth youth community to initiate a more progressive economic growth, a more inclusive development and a well-informed society based on sustainable development.

"We would like to lead the change and to achieve it together with the strength that we possess, to be resolute and fair in uniting the whole of Commonwealth towards stability in the future, to be creative and to ensure a more confident stewardship in shaping the future," stressed Kishva.

Translation: Mazlan Hanafi Basharudin

Text: Mohamad Abdullah