London, United Kingdom: The International Youth Federation announced today the launch of the new Leaders Assessment Center (LAC), taking the next step in its mission to support and empower talented young leaders across the world by hiring new IYF Representatives. 

The IYF Representatives serve as most senior-level IYF officials in their countries, leading their teams towards achievement of strategic action plans in response to national youth priorities. The IYF is delivering a coherent and effective support to their Representatives through advocacy, best practice sharing,  networking, global recognition of achievements, online resource center and leadership development programmes.

“The philosophy behind the Center is to make sure that we select the best and the brightest candidates with transparency, fairness and respect to the principles of gender equality and diversity.  Our integrated assessment process evaluates the candidates’ experience, competencies, general knowledge and skills”, said Dr. Irina MASLENNIKOVA, Director of IYF Leaders Assessment Center.

“Having the Leaders Assessment Center that combines decades of consulting experience and expertise with assessment methodologies will be a huge advantage for the IYF. The assessment process will introduce young leaders to our work and will give them the opportunity to voice opinion on youth priorities in their country”, said Ms. Melodi KAYA, Assistant Secretary-General on Representational Affairs. 

Starting today, young people can apply for IYF Representative’s role via the LAC website lac.iyfweb.org and go through the assessment process. 

The IYF Leaders Assessment Center (LAC) is recognized as a neutral, impartial, and highly professional examination and assessment facility under the IYF Bureau of Management. The assessment process is using a variety of testing and assessment methods and a passing grade is required to be considered for any Representative positions. All candidates that successfully pass the LAC assessment will receive the IYF certificate of completion.

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The IYF is a global youth network, an organization advocating for youth empowerment and connecting countries to knowledge, experience, and resources to help young people build a better future. The IYF works to empower youth in line with 2030 Global Goals Agenda, to create a sustainable world for all young people through education, advocacy, and the promotion of respect and compassion.

We inform, engage, and mobilize new audiences to take action and raise funds that support sustainable development programs for youth around the world.

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For more information, please contact the IYF® Media Relations via e-mail: press@iyfweb.org, or visit our website at www.iyfweb.org.

By: Sandra Luciano, IYF/ICT Specialist

Young people around the world represent 41% of the total population, and they are an effective and vital component of development issues.  We need to shed light on civic participation for young people because they are the ones who have the energy and the ability to find solutions to all the problems that our communities face

Civic participation is the basis of democracy and a clear expression of the principle of people's sovereignty. Civic engagement requires the presence of a group of citizens who have a sense of belonging and an interest in public affairs.

The importance of youth participation in public affairs continues to grow.  It is one of the most essential pillars of citizenship and participatory democracy in contemporary societies. Civic engagement of young people is the real gateway to mobilizing the energies of emerging generations, pumping new blood in the arteries of the political and social systems that would contribute to the continuous development movement.

Youth engagement is participatory democracy. Activating civic participation of youth will reduce the state of the political vacuum that young people live in. But first we must review how to unleash the energy of the youth. The youth must reformulate their priorities to engage with development interventions. This can be achieved with empowerment programs in line with the national agenda in order to effectively engage the youth in the civil society and higher decision-making bodies. 

Young people have a perceived sense that they’re unable to influence regulations on how their right to life, particularly economic life, is exercised. This is partly why there is a lack of civic participation among young people. Additionally, illiteracy and unemployment, play a fundamental role in the youth's reluctance to participate in political life.  When the basic needs of young people - such as finding suitable job opportunities, marriage, and starting an independent life - are not fulfilled, this negatively affects young people's voluntary work and political participation in the public domain.

To tackle these challenges, governments should fulfil the needs of youth in a way that reflects positively on their active participation in all issues of society, reducing indifference and engaging in national action. They should promote youth civic participation through open dialogue and creating opportunities for ideological discussions.

If youth are our only future, then the issue of youth participation should become our main priority more than ever. This could be achieved through scientific research, quality education, collaborative spaces for youth, or in policies directed at young people.

To mark the IYF Day on 20th April, Dr Mona Bin Ali, IYF Representative in Kuwait, talks to us about what motivates her to strive for greater youth empowerment. Dr Bin Ali is a professor at Kuwait University and a renowned young leader in Middle East.

What inspires you to campaign for a greater role for young people in society?

Young people are an essential and vital part of any society and working with them directly is one of the best things that anyone can do.  As a youth representative, working to improve conditions for young people directly affects me: the better the conditions of young people, the higher their productivity and active participation in society.

What does youth leadership mean to you?

It is active participation and giving youth the opportunity to participate. Through being a Representative in Kuwait, I am in a position to participate alongside other young people, working on projects and leading these youth initiatives is indescribable, and that’s why working with other young people and seeing their interaction and development is invaluable.

How do you see the contributions of young people to achieving the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals and the vision of Kuwait 2035?

This may be the advantage of working in the State of Kuwait, where the Kuwait 2035 vision is consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals, and therefore we find that most of the current state projects focus directly on achieving that vision.  This helps our work, as our projects are firmly linked to the SDGs and the vision of the State of Kuwait.  Kuwaiti society has a predominantly young demographic where young people represent 72%, and thus young people contribute directly and indirectly to achieving both national and international vision and goals.

Through your experience as a Representative of the IYF in the State of Kuwait, what are the most interesting elements of your work?

Working with young people, listening to their voices and understanding their ideas - their ability to be creative and their love for volunteering and contributing to a batter future for all of us. 

Why do you consider working on youth development a priority for a sustainable future?

In all societies and over time, young people remain the primary engine for any society that wants to develop, advance and progress, and therefore work to develop youth in various fields will remain a priority for me and for all who wish to ensure a sustainable future.

Tell us about the most prominent projects carried out by the IYF country team in Kuwait, which have had the greatest interaction?

The International Youth Federation established a number of activities and events in Kuwait, but the most prominent is the Development Leaders Programme, established by the Federation in collaboration with the Public Authority for Youth in the State of Kuwait.  The main aim of this programme was to build a Kuwaiti youth community familiar with the vision of Kuwait 2035 and the SDGs.  This generation could be empowered with the ability to present the vision and goals to the community through lectures, workshops and awareness campaigns - in order to spread the awareness around these objectives and also to highlight the connection between the vision of Kuwait (a new Kuwait) and the SDGs.

Approximately 100 young people participated in the programme which was divided into two phases for a period of two weeks. The outcomes of the programme were remarkable and it was covered in several TV and radio stations, and we have received a lot of requests to repeat the programme.

Tell us about your vision of the upcoming programs of the IYF in the State of Kuwait?

The International Youth Federation seeks to work by supporting national youth priorities, and in view of what the world is currently going through in the face of the emerging Coronavirus, we realise that the Federation has a lot of work to do through future programmes that can help in such situations.  These include training on crisis prevention and providing humanitarian assistance, creating volunteer schemes in specific areas where the need is high, in addition to other programs that can fulfill emerging and urgent needs at the moment.

Do you have a message for young people?

Young people should strive to achieve their dreams and create the future they want because volunteering is a key to success in the work of community development. Voluntary work helps to build community resilience, and shaping youth personality in various aspects. Fields in volunteering are diverse and therefore young people can explore their interests and discover new areas of their creativity at an early stage of their lives. Moreover, volunteering helps create social connectedness and gives young people a true sense of social responsibility.

Do you have a message for the international community?

Support young people, help them and empower them, since youth are the main driver for the rise of societies and their development, and empowering young people at the beginning of their life is very beneficial for any society. Likewise, support must be extended to instill the values of volunteerism for young people around the world.