UNDP engages youth in Shkoder
Story Highlights
- A lack of engagement arises from a lack of knowledge about various activities and projects, and this comes either because youth prefers in surfing the web and having a coffee with friends, or because no one is introducing them to potential life-changing options.
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UNDP Albania with the support of the British Embassy in Albania organized an activity in Shkoder for youth engagement, titled “Made in Shkodra.’’ The activity was inspired by the rising trend of brain-drain that Albania is suffering. Thus this activity and other undertaken throughout the country, seek to create friendly cities and communities through the unfolding of youth’s ideas and initiatives.
More than 100 young people from the region of Shkodra participated in this event. The participants said that if the youth engaged more in the activities of the city, perhaps they wouldn’t leave their homes. A lack of engagement arises from a lack of knowledge about various activities and projects, and this comes either because youth prefers in surfing the web and having a coffee with friends, or because no one is introducing them to potential life-changing options.
A stressing point was to how and where would the change come from, and most agree that a change should arise from the individual. If they want to be more activity in the social life of the community, they should take the necessary steps to get there. This would lead to a progressive positive change in the country. When everyone leaves, who is going to fix this country? This was a question raised as well.
“A better future would come from a having a secure future,’’ said Valmira, a participating student. However this better and happier future would come only if these individuals were more active in making decisions for themselves that would also affect and positively change their communities.
Other students decided to undertake an individual, volunteer project on informing their peers on activities happening in their city. They said that there are people who love their home-city and country, however, they are both unaware about what is happening in their cities, and in a comfort zone. This activity according to another student, Deborah, won’t only seek to inform their peers on various in-town activities, but also develop and unfold projects that would benefit the future of Shkoder and Albania.
“The title [Made in Shkodra], so we can give youth the opportunity to see the possibility in creating a youth-friendly Shkoder. But what does this mean, and what are the needs that young people have? How could the youth engage so they can come up with some solutions that really make Shkoder to be friendly to young people, either by cultural activities, their voices being heard in decision-making; the creation of a healthy youth, of opportunities for cultural exchanges and ideas through the individual implementation of technology, and not waiting upon someone else to do it for them,’’ said Julia Goga, the head of the Albanian innovation expedite group.
She said that the aim of this project was to inspire youth to come up with concrete initiatives and solutions to issues they face everyday in their cities. These issues, such as unemployment, inability to be included in the social and economic decision-making of the local administration, have been some of the reasons that have pushed youth to leave the country.
This project of UNDP with collaboration of the British Embassy is part of the larger project launched by UNDP Albania, “Support to employment and social services for vulnerable youth and women in Northern Albania.” The project aims to create tangible opportunities for the youth living in the three municipalities by introducing tailor-made entrepreneurship training programs, offering opportunities for self-employment and start-ups and offering free legal aid to the most vulnerable. The project is now moving to Kukes, following the same process, “Made in Kukes.”
