"Investing in Youth: Path to Accelerated Development" conference will kick off on 9 May in Istanbul

The Eastern Europe and Central Asia Youth Conference , "Investing in Youth: Path to Accelerated Development" will take place in Istanbul from 9-11 May, 2011.

The UN General Assembly proclaimed this year (12 August 2010 – 11 August 2011) as the International Year of Youth (IYY) and reaffirmed the World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY) to recognize the importance of educated, healthy, skilled and active youth for national development.

Within the scope of International Year of Youth, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Eastern Europe and Central Asia Regional Office is organizing a Youth Conference “Investing in Youth: Path to Accelerated Development”.

This Conference will will focus on the three main areas related to youth sexual and reproductive health and rights:


1) Ignorance: out. Sexual Health Education: in!


Governments can ensure universal access of students to comprehensive, age appropriate life-skills based sexual and reproductive health education, including HIV/STI prevention across all tiers of the educational system.


2) Healthy youth – healthy society now and in the future


Governments can provide access to youth friendly, comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services including HIV/STIs for all young people including most at risk/vulnerable youth
.

3) Youth counts!
 

Countries may benefit from mainstreaming youth issues such as youth employment, skills development, education, youth migration, equal participation, social support and others into socio-economic and demographic policies and programmes.

These three main focuses provide an opportunity to discuss and address the issues relating to today's young people throughout central Asia and Eastern Europe. It will also provide a forum for young people, governments and decision makers to work together in taking necessary steps for positive change in their countries.

Young people from the region are being mobilized to express their voices at the Conference by recording video interviews with young people in the region, updating twitter posts, starting their blogs in www.conversationsforabetterworld.com.

Now is a time for young people to stand up and be heard, and take an active role in  their local community as well as  their national communities, and to be a part of the decision making processes that directly affect them and their peers.

With positive attitudes, positive feedback and government involvement, we can achieve postive outcomes that will see countries "Investing in youth" and "creating a path to accelerated development" not only for today's youth, but future generations as well.