Young people actively participate in shaping local policies through the regional youth platform

At the third meeting of the Regional Youth Platform, held on February 13, 2025, at the Officer’s House in Bitola, young people from the Pelagonia region actively debated key issues affecting them with the mayors, in the presence of the Ambassador of Switzerland, Mrs. Véronique Ullmann. The meeting was also attended by the Presidents of the Councils and representatives of the Municipal Councils.
The meeting provided an opportunity for exchanging ideas and jointly adopting concrete measures to be implemented in all nine municipalities by the end of the year. Discussions focused on local economic development, environmental protection, and improving health and fire safety.
As a result of the meeting, specific measures were adopted to be implemented across all nine municipalities by the end of the year, including the integration of organic waste into the circular economy, a pilot project for waste management in schools, fire safety education as part of extracurricular activities, organizing a regional youth entrepreneurship competition, and conducting business training for young entrepreneurs.
The Regional Youth Platform represents an innovative mechanism for participatory democracy, aimed at strengthening the participation of young people in local decision-making processes. This mechanism is being piloted within the framework of the project “Youth Policies Tailored to Young People,” implemented by Pro Local in cooperation with eight local civil organizations.
Ambassador Ullmann emphasized that the inclusion of young people in policy-making is essential for the development of local communities, stressing that their voices and ideas must be integrated into decision-making processes.
The project “Youth Policies Tailored to the Youth” is supported by the Government of Switzerland through the Civica Mobilitas program.