On 2-3 of October, 2013 Ms Valentina Albu represented BSCSIF at the Youth Side Event to the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, held in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova. The Youth Side Event was an initiative meant to encourage youth participation in the process of decision-making within the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, where BSCSIF is a participant as a member of an EU member country and which took place on the 4-5 of October, 2013 in Moldova.
EaP CSF Working group 4 “Contacts between people” in partnership with National Youth Council of Moldova (CNTM), National Council of Youth and Children’s Organizations of Civil Society of Belarus (RADA) and Ministry of Youth and Sport Moldova have invited BSCSIF at the Youth Side Event to the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. Young people, as a specific group and a party of a civil society have a special role in promoting the European integration in the EaP countries. Youth of the EaP region is a powerful catalyst for positive change and contributors for European integration. Therefore, the youth participation should be enhanced in promoting democratic reforms in the Eastern Partnership countries in general and in their own countries in particular. Young people and representatives of civil society all over the world play a crucial role in providing inputs into democratic and market-oriented reforms based on shared values and initiatives. Respect of human rights, the rule of law, good governance, transparency, sustainable development and principles of market economy are some of the common values set as objectives for the Eastern Partnership Community and the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum.
The goal of the event was to increase the role of youth of the countries of Eastern Partnership (EaP) in the European policies. The objectives of the side event were to provide participants of the Youth Side Event with the information about the state of youth and youth policy in each of the EaP countries, information about mechanisms of participation of EaP youth in European politics; provide EaP member-states, European Union (EU) structures, including CSF, with recommendations concerning policies development focused on the EaP youth.