European Development Days: Engagement for Democracy

Citizens create a democracy. Include the youth!

International IDEA will showcase its Youth Democracy Academy and Inter-generational Dialogue for Democracy initiatives at the European Development Days 2017 (EDD17), on 7 and 8 June 2017 in Tour & Taxis, Brussels.

The European Development Days (EDD) are organized by the European Commission to gather the global development community to share ideas and experiences and inspire future action and partnerships. The forum attracts each year more than 6,000 participants from over 140 countries. The Office of International IDEA to the European Union will host a stand in the EDD 2017 Village (Stand 70) to promote the work of the Institute and its two programmes aim at youth engagement for democracy.

Youth Engagement for Democracy: efficient learning initiatives to enable young people to enhance their knowledge and skills on democratic processes and institutions, with a view to successfully engage in, and lead, politics.

Two programmes will be showcased by International IDEA:

The Youth Democracy Academy is an educative programme for young people, with a strong interest in community leadership. The curriculum of the Academy is composed of 12 modules, through which youth engagement and leadership in democratic processes and institutions are promoted. 

The Inter-generational Dialogue for Democracy widens space for democratic dialogue and participation. It promotes discussions between generations to build an enabling environment for a new solidarity and youth participation, as well as to renew the mutual understanding on democracy.

Both initiatives are set to facilitate dialogue on democracy, among young people and across generations. They are mutually reinforcing, and respond to the need to overcome the exclusion of youth from political processes and institutions. The disconnect between youth and politics requires new tools offering avenues for participation and empowerment.

Young people can play an important role in promoting the voices of their generation and ensuring that their concerns are reflected in policies that affect both the present and future. The early involvement of young people in democratic institutions and processes has a great potential to solidify their ability to effectively contribute to a country’s democratic future and to take part in leadership.

In addressing this need, International IDEA developed these two programmes in support of the European Commission’s efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The two initiatives are currently being implemented in North Africa and Europe, and a more global implementation is foreseen in 2017 and beyond.

Read more on our stand on the official website of the European Development Days: www.eudevdays.eu/node/19452