Video conference on “The Role of Youth in the SCO Region” for International Youth Day

On 12 August 2020, the SCO Secretariat, the Russian part of the SCO Youth Council and the SCOLAR Network youth platform held a video conference, "The Role of Youth in the SCO Region," which was timed to International Youth Day.

In his remarks at the opening ceremony, SCO Secretary-General Vladimir Norov said that young people were the essential segment of human resources and a key intermediary in social change, economic development and technical innovation.

He praised the work done by the SCO Youth Council that seeks to strengthen youth cooperation and promote intellectual and moral development in the younger generation.

Mr Norov highlighted the importance of counteracting attempts to involve young people in terrorist and extremist activities and preventing the spread of religious intolerance, xenophobia, and racial discrimination. In this context, he emphasised that it was essential to fulfill the 2018 Action Plan to implement the Joint Address of the SCO Heads of State to the Youth.

Stressing that the COVID-19 pandemic had interfered with the normal lifestyles of millions of young people, Mr Norov dwelled on the need to involve young people in entrepreneurship, improve the business climate, support youth startup projects, and encourage pro-active youth participation in the digital economy and e-commerce in the SCO region. He suggested that the SCO focus on developing virtual venues and online platforms as a method to promote youth entrepreneurship and startup initiatives.

Secretary-General Norov shared his vision on how to ensure high-quality education in the SCO countries in the COVID-19 environment, including via the development of e-learning. He stressed the importance of pooling efforts to draft a multilateral cooperation programme in the online education area.

Mr Norov praised the performance of volunteers in the SCO countries that were active during the pandemic. "In the SCO, almost 200 million young people volunteered to help their fellow citizens. They are making an invaluable contribution to supporting those who need help during this difficult period," he said.

He stressed that the future development of the entire SCO area depended on young people's participation in political, socioeconomic and public life both at home and internationally, where their abilities and contribution to developing their countries and giving shape to the future would be recognised.

The event was also addressed by heads of the national parts of the Youth Council: Denis Kravchenko from Russia, Yelnur Beisenbayev from Kazakhstan, Dong Xia from China, Taalaibek Daiyrbekov from Kyrgyzstan, Usman Dar from Pakistan, Umedzhon Rakhimzoda from Tajikistan, Alisher Sadullayev from Uzbekistan, as well as Assistant Programme Adviser Kamal Kumar of the National Service Scheme of India, Chairman of the Russian Youth Union Pavel Krasnorutsky, Deputy Department Director at the Russian Ministry of Science and Education Darya Sharova, and co-founders of the SCOLAR Network Youth Platform Olim Alimov, V. Hu, and others.

The participants considered current issues and youth problems in the SCO space and exchanged views on the further development of collaboration within the SCO Youth Council. They also discussed preparations for the next meeting to be held in St. Petersburg before the end of this year.

They also focused on national programmes on preventing the involvement of young people in destructive activities, counteracting the spread of the ideology of terrorism among the youth, and encouraging young people to join the implementation of joint economic and humanitarian initiatives aimed at the involvement of young people in entrepreneurial activities and innovation projects. They also reported on the work performed by youth volunteer movements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event was monitored by the permanent representatives of the SCO member states to the SCO Secretariat and participants in the SCOLAR Network youth platform.