Western Balkans Youth Lab Project: RCC Secretary General meets youth from North Macedonia Youth Council 

Skopje – “I would highly encourage you to leave the region. Yes, go abroad and see other cultures, but come back. Only by learning from others we can make our region better place for all of us and make a change. That is why we do not want to invent algorithm, but to make youth voices being heard. In that regard, I want to compliment you for trying hard to implement policies and participate in decision making. It is encouraging to see that North Macedonia’s Youth Council has been engaged in implementing Youth Guarantee, first example of its implementation by a non-EU Member State. That is the path that the rest of Western Balkans should follow,” said Majlinda Bregu, Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) while addressing the young people from the North Macedonian Youth Council in Skopje yesterday. 

Young people were very clear about their needs: we should strive for nurturing EU values, keep strengthening regional cooperation, engage in more interregional exchanges, as well as enable easier movement across the region; and in order to expand employment opportunities, diploma recognition and easier traveling across the region are a must. 

“Listening to the youth perspectives is a reality check for all of us and at the same time it is the only way to prevent brain drain, which is among most frightening problems region faces. To do that, besides providing more employment and educational opportunities, we need to deliver trustful and reliable information so as to have youth as key actors in policy making. That is why checking information based on which you form your opinions and attitudes is crucial. It is time for youth to be louder as well as play smarter,” added Bregu.

“RCC is fully supporting the needs of young people and through the Common Regional Market endorsed by the 6 WB leaders is working hard on bringing these initiatives closer to the ones who needed it the most. But it is also your turn to help us and advocate for fulfilling the objectives already set at Sofia Summit. That is why we strongly count on you to deliver the right message to your peers,” concluded Bregu. 

Young representatives of Secretariat and Governing Board of National Youth Council welcomed RCC Secretary General in their premises MladiHub in Skopje, where they expressed their gratitude for her initiative to visit and listen to the challenges they face, as well as jointly discuss possible solutions. Secretary General and youth participants discussed key challenges that young people in North Macedonia face such as quality of life, women participation, unemployment, security, environment and confidence of youth overall.  The visit is a part of the activities of the RCC EU-funded Western Balkans Youth Lab Project. 

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