In this issue of Youth Information:

- Independence Day Celebration with a difference: Int. Conf. on Youth & Democracy in S. Asia

- Youths to make voices heard: UNFPA.

- "We Are One" Dialogue on Culture diversity chalk-out the POA.

- Delhi Govt. Started the toll free ‘Youth Phone service’.

- European Commission Communication on Youth and Youth Policy

- Int. Youth Day: Young people everywhere are called upon………

Upcoming events:                                                                                 

- Regional Workshop on Trafficking of Girls.

- Tunza International Children's Conference on the Environment.

- Human Rights Watch Fellowship for Young Journalists.

- Youth and ICT: Global Forum on Youth and ICT for Development.

- Int. UNESCO Youth Forum.

- Janadesh 2007.

- Conference on Youth Enterprise and Sustainable Livelihoods.

- 7^th TREAT Asia Annual Network Meeting.

 

International Conference of Youth & Democracy in S. Asia

Independence Day Celebration
with a difference

 

“Unless we make the lives of our 300 million, who people below poverty line, comfortable, independence has no relevance. Progress and growth should go hand to hand with social justice” said Mr Mohan Dharia, freedom fighter and former Dy. Chairperson of Planning Commission while inaugurating the International Conference of Youth and Democracy in South Asia.

 

The International Conference of Youth and Democracy in South Asia held in Pune, Maharastra from August 11-15, 2007 and organized by CYDA.

 

Earlier Mr Mathew Matham, CEO of CYDA welcome the delegates and guest and give the brief detail of the objective of the Conference, said “this conference is an attempt to celebrate Independence Day with a difference; by coming to together to exchange our views to enhance youth participation in strengthening democracy.”

 

Mr Faroque Shaikh, film actor said that Democracy and Secularism as pillar of India and appealed youth to reaffirm their faith in them.

 

Milin Bokil, Oxfam said ‘Youth cannot be mute spectators in democracy, they have t otake control by taking parti in social activities.Thus youth can be contribute not only to sustain but also strengthen democracy.’ He was chairing the session on ‘Role of youth in sustaining democracies’.

In the session of ‘Role of Young Parliamentarians in Democracy’ on 12 August 2007 Ms supriya Sule, Member of Parliament said that the MPs today are below age of 45 and most of them see politiecs as a place to voice their concern and and pursue their vision. Th foremost challenge they should take is to recover people trust upon the system.

 

On speaking on Globaliziation and Gandhi, Mr Suhas Palekar, a Gandhian Scholar said “Today we are driven not driven by political power but by economic power, which is hard to fight.”

In the Youth in Action section, case studies by organization were presented includes case study by Dr Anita Patil Deshmukh of PUKAR, Kanita Sinha from Pravah, Vinay Panjvani spoke on Yuva unstoppable.

 

Ms Yasmin Sayed presented the case study of ‘Youth4Change’ is a youth run organizations supported by CYDA.

 

The last working day (14 August) was devoted to Youth Policies. In the plenary session on “Youth Policies: Situation and Challenges in South Asia”, Dr Rajan Welukar, Vice Chancellor, Yashwantrao Open University, Nasik gave key address. He gave the emphasis to developed the ‘Youth Development Indicators’ for India for better involvement of youth in development as well as effective policy making for young people.

 

Mr Ravi Narayan, Secretary General, Indian Committee of Youth Organizations (ICYO), while chairing the session said that youth policies may be play vital role in youth development in South Asia if implementation mechanism is strong and effective.

 

He also agreed with Dr Welukar of need of Indian own Youth Development Indicators. Dr (Mrs) Sarumathy from Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development inform during the Q&A session that her institute is working on this issue.

 

In another panel discussion on ‘Youth Policies in shaping future of South Asia’ four presenters made the presentation. The session is Chaired by Mr Ravi Narayan, Secretary General of ICYO.

 

Dr (Mrs) Sarumathy from Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development presented the comparative study of youth policies in South Asian countries including the Brunai, Singapor and Malaysia. 

 

Dr. Anant Bhan, Independent Researcher spoke on ‘Youth Suicide’. He gave the fact and figure about problem and work done on this issue.

Mr Rabi Aryal from Asian Student’s Association (ASA) presented various views on about against youth going on around the world.

 

In his chair remark Mr Narayan said that youth Policies in South Asian countries still have to come in shape. According to Mr Narayan, may south Asian Countries still to draft youth policy. Sri Lanka recently announce the youth policy which is very bulky documents and rejected by most of the youth organizations, Pakistan withdrawn the youth policy which was adopted by them in 1993. There is long way to go for implementation of these policies.

 

Mr Vishwajit Kadam, Secretary, Bharat Vidyapeeth was the chief Guest and key note address delivered by Mr Pravind Pardeshi, PMC Commissioner. The participants drafted the commitments and decided to organize this conference every in different countries. The delegates from Bhutan and Sri Lanka offer to host the 2008 conference. The delegates also received the memento and certificate from dignitaries in the function.

 

Youths to Make Voices Heard: UNFPA

 

Young people need to be given due importance and allowed to play an active role in formulating national programmes for youth development, said a top UNFPA official stationed in Dhaka.‘ Young people are very important group in our agenda,’ said Arthur Erken, UNFPA representative in Bangladesh on eve of International Youth Day. The UN population fund has special programmes for the youth in Bangladesh spending about two million dollars for their development. Reproductive health, campaigns against early marriage and dowry are some of the interventions where youths are directly involved in the national programme being implemented by the government’s Department of Youth Development.

 

Arthur stressed on an interview with New Age on the eve of International Youth Day being observed worldwide today for more pro-active role of the gatekeepers like parents and religious leaders to break the social taboos.

 

" We Are One" Dialogue Chalk-out the POA on Culture Diversity

 

The World Youth Foundation hosted the “We are One” Dialogue on Culture Diversity for Youth of Asia and Europe, from 30^th June – 4^th July 2007 at Melaka in Malaysia. The 88 participants from 25 countries from Asia and Europe attended this five-day dialogue. The Dialogue was constructed around the notion of ‘Cultural Diversity’, and provided young people with exciting opportunities to experience first hand living experience of multicultural Malaysians. 

 

A Keynote Address on “Cultural Diversity, Civilizations and the Challenge for Peace: Obstacles and Opportunities” was delivered by Hon. Dato' Seri Syed Hamid Albar, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Malaysia.  Participants of the Dialogue shared their experiences about programmes undertaken by non-government organizations on cultural diversity and inter-ethnic education in their host countries.

 

The Plan of Action was chalk-out in the Dialogue further work on Culture Diversity.

 

Delhi Govt. Started the toll free ‘Youth Phone service’

 

The Government of Delhi running the ‘youth’ helpline named Yuva Phone line in Delhi.  The counsellors are available round the clock on toll free no 1800116888.

The helpline is specially for students.

 

EC Communication on Youth and Youth Policy

 

According to European Youth Forum (YFJ), they welcomes the adoption of the European Commission Communication “Promoting young people’s full participation in education, employment and society”, and sees it as the cross-sector approach detailed in the Communication as a very positive step which responds to demands which the YFJ has been voicing for several years.  A genuine European Youth Policy is thus about to take root.

 

“This communication recognises the role of youth organisations, the European Youth Forum, and its partners, in the entire process of designing, implementing and monitoring youth policy,” said Bettina Schwarzmayr, President of the European Youth Forum.  “Therefore, we call upon EU Member States to get inspired and we welcome the future steps to be implemented on the structured dialogue with youth.  However, with no grand vision or coherent strategy on volunteering, we duly call upon the European Council to be more ambitious in their resolution.”

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International Youth Day (12 August 2007)

 

Young people everywhere are called upon to
participate in the life of society and in decision-making

 

The world’s 1.2 billion young people are being called upon to stand up and make their voices heard on International Youth Day, which is celebrated on 12 August. The observance is a reminder to youth that their contribution to the development dialogue is valuable, and that their participation matters. To participate means not only to have a seat at the political table, but to play an active role in development by contributing their skills and energy to the improvement of their communities.

 

ICT: power tool of the young

Many of the initiatives led by youth take advantage of information and communication technologies, which young people tend to use with ease. These are becoming “truly hubs for the communication and social networking of youth,” explains Ms. Stephens. A presentation on using the internet for youth-led development will be delivered at the International Youth Day in New York. The event will provide examples from an international youth-led network empowered by technology to show how youth can use the internet to take action in their local and global communities.

 

As a positive note, the fact youth are for the most part technologically savvy increases their chances of harnessing the benefits of globalization. In addition to access to knowledge, ICT is opening up new options education such as e-learning and distance education. The World Youth Report 2007, scheduled for release in October, will show how ICT has improved access to schooling in several Asian countries. In China, for example, there are more than 2,700 radio and television universities offering 18,000 classes. Provisional statistics from UNDP suggest that there may be up to 10 million graduates of these universities.

 

While globalization may have facilitated the spread of technology, too many youths are on the wrong side of the digital divide, according to the Secretary-General report, and therefore fail to unable to reap the benefits of technology access.

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incoming events:

 

Regional Workshop on Trafficking of Girls

Beti Bachhao Aandolan (Protect the Daughter movement) is going to organize a regional workshop in Patna, Bihar from September 23 - 24, 2007. The workshop is aimed at coordination between different stakeholders working against trafficking of girls and joint hands to flight against the alarming situation.

 

The agenda of the workshop includes; analysis of the present situation related to trafficking and to discuss the root causes of the increasing trafficking in light of socio-economic situation, rehabilitation, repatriation, social rehabilitation of victims and community policing. The workshop will also discuss on preparation of memorandum for the joint collaboration on the issue of human trafficking.

 

For further detail contact Mr Arun Kumar Singh, Director, Beti Bachhao Aandolan at Mobile  09835411981 or telephone 0612-3299790

 

Tunza International Children's Conference on the Environment

 

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) will be organizing Tunza International Children's Conference on the Environment in  Stavanger, Norway from  17 to 21 June  2008.   The organizer will bring together 1,000 children aged 10 to 14 years in 2008 conference. The theme of the conference will be ‘A Climate for change ‘.

 

For more information log on: http://www.unep.org/tunza/children/events/icc_2008 / 

 

Human Rights Watch Fellowship for Young Journalists

 

Recent graduates worldwide have the chance to apply for an international fellowship with Human Rights Watch. Deadline: October 5.

 

The Alan R. and Barbara D. Finberg Fellowship is open to any eligible candidate, regardless of nationality. Fellows work full-time for one year with Human Rights Watch in New York, Washington, D.C., or London. Tasks include monitoring human rights developments in various countries, conducting on-site investigations, and drafting reports on human rights conditions.

 

For more on fellowships log on http://voiceofsouth.org/fellowships

 

Youth and ICT: Global Forum on Youth and ICT for Development

 

The Global Alliance for ICT and Development (GAID) is organizing ‘Global Forum on Youth and ICT for Development’ from September 24-26, 2007 in Geneva, Switzerland. The theme of Forum is “Youth and ICT as Agents of Change”.

 

The Forum aims at actively engaging youth in debates and discussions with their peers, policy makers, the private sector and technology experts in exploring ways to empower their communities through the appropriate and responsible use of ICT.

For more information log on www.un-gaid.org/gfyouth

 

Int. UNESCO Youth Forum

 

UNESCO will organize the 5^th International Youth Forum in Paris. France from October 12-13, 2007. Every two years the Forum gives young people (nominated by governments) the opportunity to share their experiences, identify common concerns.

 

The 2007 Youth Forum will examine the results and recommendations from a series of Regional UNESCO Youth Forums held in 2006 and 2007 on the theme of ‘Young People and the Dialogue among Civilizations, Cultures and Peoples’. 

 

National Peace and Harmony Youth Camp

The above youth camp will be held in New Delhi from October 22 to 28, 2007, organized by National Youth Project with the support from Ministry of Youth and Sports.

 

The 500 youth from all over will be participating in week long camp. For further information, contact ICYO secretariat.

 

Janadesh 2007

 

Janadesh 2007 will start from Gwalior from Delhi on 2^nd October 2007. More than 25,000 preparing to peaceful foot march for 26 days to press for their demand of livelihood and right on land. These tribal and deprived people (non violence) fighting for their demand since December 2005 when they decided to make final attempt in People’s parliament held on 10 December 2005 in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh.

 

ICYO supporting the event and provides the update regularly in YI. On 2^nd October 2007,  diffirent organizations organizing the solidarity programme in 400 districts of India.

 

ICYO all upon all the developmental organization to participate in these event and give all kind of support for moral busting of foot-marchers.

 

Conference on Youth Enterprise and Sustainable Livelihoods

 

The Commonwealth Youth Programme is hosting a one-day conference, entitled “Investing in youth: unleashing the potential of young entrepreneurs” on 10 September 2007 at Marlborough House, Headquarters of the Commonwealth Secretariat in London. The objective of the conference is to strengthen youth enterprise by providing opportunities for young entrepreneurs to gain access to finance, markets, and skills. For more information log on http://www.thecommonwealth.org/news/166531/130707investingyouth.htm

 

Event: 7^th TREAT Asia Annual Network Meeting

Place: Hanoi, Vietnam

Date: September 7 – 10,  2007

Organizer: Therapeutics Research Education AIDS Training (TREAT) Asia

Contact: Stan Wong at stan.wong@...

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Youth Information is published by

Indian Committee of Youth Organizations (ICYO)

194-A, Arjun Nagar, Safdarjang Enclave

New Delhi 110029, India

Phone: 91 9811729093  / 91 11 26183978 Fax 91 11 26198423

Email: icyoindia@... / icyo@...

Web:  www.icyo.in

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Indian Committee of Youth Organizations (ICYO) is a registered non-profit, non-governmental network organization, committed in developing areas of mutual cooperation and understanding among different youth voluntary agencies, youth groups, clubs and individuals working in the field of youth welfare in India. 

ICYO functions as an umbrella organization of youth NGOs in India. It's family consists of
over 356 organizations spread in 122 districts of 22 states from different corners of India.

Our goal:
To improve and extend the youth work and services through Youth Organizations;
To enhance and demonstrate youth work in the society;
To promote effective youth programmmes;
To organize network of civil society organizations working towards the development of youth work;
To organize seminars, conferences, workshops, trainings;
To maintain international relation with organizations promoting young people in their programmes and activities

Affiliation: 

Consultative (Roster) Status with ECOSOC, United Nations;
Consultative Status with Commission on Sustainable Development;
Full Member of World Assembly of Youth (WAY); Asian Youth Council (AYC);
Youth for Habitat International Network (YFHIN); CRIN, South Asia Youth
Environment Network (SAYEN), Affiliate group of ECPAT International, Thailand;
ATSECE-DELHI, Indian Partner of AIDS Care Watch Campaign;
Steering Committee member of World Bank's YDP Network;
Working relation with Indian Association of Parliamentarians (IAPPD);
International Medical Parliamentarians Organizations (IMPO);
Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD);
World Youth Foundation, Malaysia