11school students leave for US today

They are scheduled to leave for the US today (Saturday). The students had a pre-departure orientation at the American Club organised by Nacel Open Door, The American Centre US Embassy Dhaka and the US Department of State on August 8.

Gene George, Mission Director of USAID Bangladesh, welcomed the students, as did Dr Michelle Jones, Cultural Attache and Ms Arefin Jahan, Student Advisor, American Centre and Dulal Biswas, Secretary General, National Federation of Youth Organisations in Bangladesh.

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During the programme, students will live with American host families, attend school, engage in activities to learn more about American society, acquire leadership skills and help educate Americans about their countries and culture. This is P4L-YES's first year in Bangladesh, building on the success of 2003, when 160 students from Nigeria, Pakistan, Turkey, West Bank/Gaza, Indonesia and other countries travelled to the United States. This year the programme has expanded to include Afghanistan, India, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and the Arab community in Israel.

P4L-YES is a global initiative of the US Department of State to reach a younger and more diverse audience than before. P4L wishes to engage the successor generation in a dialogue for greater understanding through expanded exchange programmes, and builds on values the US has in common with Muslim societies. It seeks to strengthen voices of moderation and reinforce the US commitment to education and opportunity.

The 2004 participants in P4L-YES are: Shayaan Rahim Chowdhury, Sarowerdy Hossain, SM Fahad Bin Kamal, Md Imran Kayesh, Md Arifur Rahman, Raisa Safinatul Kazi, Samia Idris Seraj, Roesky Zafir Bakshe, Md Jamal, Niaz Md Zaidi, and Mohammad Zubair Hossain.