2024-05-14 05:45:52
The EU Youth Dialogue is an important mechanism that builds a bridge between young people and policy makers and offers a unique opportunity for decision makers to understand about young people. In this regard, it is important that young people are well informed, actively engaged and consulted so that they can present perspectives and opinions. This was said by the Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Petar Mladenov, during his speech in the “Youth” section of the meeting of the Council for Education, Youth, Culture and Sports, which is being held today and tomorrow in Brussels.
The main topic of today’s meeting is “Political debate on the follow-up to the results of the EU Youth Conference (2-5 March 2024)”.
“A National Working Group has been established in Bulgaria for the implementation of the EU Dialogue on Youth Issues. It aims to contribute to the organization of consultations and to the promotion and impact of the Dialogue. The representation in it is balanced, and the participation of experts from the public sector, youth non-governmental organizations and other interested parties contributes to the implementation of the European Youth Goals at the national and local level, Petar Mladenov also stated to his colleagues from the European Union. – In order to improve the process of monitoring and feedback regarding the results of the EU Youth Dialogue, we need to work towards closer coordination and dialogue between young people and political representatives at the EU level.”
Petar Mladenov also pointed out that the European Youth Conference in Ghent provided a stable basis for political action.
“The presented recommendations and the possible concrete measures for their implementation, determined by the young participants, directly reflect their needs and the challenges they face as members of modern society. We believe that it is necessary to take them into account in the development of local, national and European policies related to young people. An important role is also played by the institutional support, which is of fundamental importance for the provision of the necessary information to young people in connection with the implementation of these measures, said Petar Mladenov. – Some of the proposed measures largely exist in Bulgaria, such as, for example, discounts on public transport for pupils and students, access to a psychologist in schools, targeted funding for young people with fewer opportunities in education, tax breaks for purchasing and renovation of housing for young families and better access to funding opportunities for youth activities at the local level.
We welcome the measures proposed by young people aimed at the European youth goal on inclusive societies and will work together to implement them.
As for EU-level measures, we can note that their implementation would contribute to the promotion of inclusive societies, with the EU programs “Erasmus +”, “European Solidarity Corps”, DiscoverEU and others playing an essential role here.
The meeting of the Council for Education, Youth, Culture and Sports continues on May 14 with the “Sports” part, where the Minister of Youth and Sports, Georgi Glushkov, will take part.