On June 18th 2022 members of the Working Group (WG) “Youth Participation in the Local Self-Government ” co-organized Youth Forum Zugdidi 2022, in cooperation with the Zugdidi Municipality City Hall. The Forum brought together over 150 young people from Imereti and Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Regions including youth from the occupied territory of Georgia to discuss the most pressing issues that young people face in the region.
The main goal of the Forum was to promote youth activism in the Samegrelo region and provide space to the youth to raise their voices and advocate for more youth-friendly policies and changes they deem appropriate in their region.
Within the framework of the panel discussions, GIP representatives as well as the WG members presented the findings of the policy document which included challenges that youth experience in the Samegrelo and Imereti regions. The representatives of the local self-government of Samegrelo and Imereti Regions, international donor organizations, the Youth Agency, and members of the Georgian Parliament attended the event to learn more about youth needs and challenges.
In the policy document “Planning and Implementation of the Youth Participation in the Local-Self Governance: What Do Young People Want?“ The WG members analyzed the challenges faced by youth regarding participation in local self-government. Using their municipalities as a case study, and proposed possible ways to overcome these obstacles.
The Working Groups have been formed by ELS alumni to promote youth-driven change in selected policy areas. It is the initiative under the framework of the project “Promoting Youth Transformational Leaders in Georgia,” implemented by the Georgian Institute of Politics with the financial support of USAID/Georgia.
