OSCE helps young people in Kosovo voice their concerns, influence decision-making

PRISHTINЁ/PRIŠTINA, 12 August 2014 – To mark International Youth Day, the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, UNICEF and GIZ (the German agency for international co-operation) will support today 25 Local Youth Action Councils (LYACs) in taking the concerns of young people to local- and central-level officials.

LYACs members will meet their peers throughout Kosovo to survey and note issues affecting youth. They will present their findings to relevant institutions in the coming weeks and will use the #YourDayYourVoice hashtag on social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) to continue sharing their views and discussing priorities.

“More than half of Kosovo’s population is between the ages of 14 and 25. Listening to their concerns and making sure that they participate in public life and decision-making processes are key to the further development of participatory democracy in Kosovo, in the short-, medium- and long-term,” said the Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador Jean-Claude Schlumberger.

“I call on all institutions in Kosovo to actively engage with youth and be responsive to their needs and their priorities, which include access to education, services, culture and employment.”

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo has been supporting the involvement of young people in decision-making processes over the past four years by assisting the establishment and the work of LYACs, municipal Youth Centres, and the Central Youth Action Council.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo is mandated with democratic-institution building, human rights protection and promotion, and public safety sector development.