OSCE Central Asian Youth Network welcomes its second year graduates
ISSYK-KUL, Kyrgyzstan, 31 October 2005 - Over 30 students from all over Central Asia are taking part in an international conference in Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan, to mark the end of the second year of activities within the OSCE Central Asian Youth Network (CAYN).
The CAYN, launched in May 2004, is aimed at contributing to international co-operation, conflict prevention, liberalization and democratization by promoting good relations and friendly cross-border contacts among students in the region.
"Through the Network, we want to build and strengthen links between the young people of Central Asia", said Sabine Machl, Deputy Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, at the opening ceremony of the conference.
In addition to receiving in-depth information about OSCE principles and commitments, participants will also work to improve their leadership, team-building, and presentation, public speaking and academic writing skills.
At the conference, which runs for three days, the students will present their research findings and the best papers will be published in a special collection to be distributed to ministries of education and universities in the region.
"My attitude toward the issues in Central Asia has radically changed," said Dildora Khamidova, a participant from Kyrgyzstan.
"Before becoming part of the Network, I looked at things from a Kyrgyz perspective only. Today, I understand that the regional states are interconnected and interdependent. I worked out some new ideas that might possibly contribute to the development of the region".
Guest speakers from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Swiss Graduate Institute for Development Studies, and the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, will conduct sessions on the general security situation, democratization and the rule of law, as well as economic-environmental issues and policies in the region.
The activities of the CAYN will continue in 2006 with the expected inclusion of up to 100 new participants from the region. Current participants will remain in the Network and continue to be engaged by taking part in an online discussion forum.