On 21-23 January 2024, the Expert seminar on European and international policy agendas on children, youth affairs and children's rights took place in Leuven (Belgium). The EU Belgium Presidency organised this seminar to create a space for experts and policymakers to contribute to the improved alignment of policy agendas within the European Union, the Council of Europe and the United Nations.

The outcomes of the seminar will contribute to the Council Conclusions on the European and international policy agendas on children, youth, and children’s rights proposed by the Belgian EU Presidency. These conclusions are intended for discussion and acceptance by the Council of Ministers in May 2024.

Olena Chernykh, Senior Project Officer, the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine, the project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III” contributed to the seminar and discussions, reflected on the seminar’s conclusions made by rapporteur at the third day of the event. In her speech at the closing session Olena Chernykh expressed gratitude to the EU Belgium Presidency for the invitation to take part in the seminar and presented the Council of Europe work in Ukraine in the field of youth in time of the military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

Since February 2022, the Council of Europe contributes to the development of youth policy and youth work in Ukraine in time of the war through mapping the needs and series of training programmes on social cohesion, trauma informed youth work, non-formal education, participatory youth policy. It addresses the emerging challenges in the field of youth, including massive displacement across the country, overall insecurity in all aspects of life.

Olena Chernykh presented to Benjamin Dalle, the Flemish Minister of Youth, the Collection of experience of youth work, based on the approaches and standards of the Council of Europe, in the context of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. The Council of Europe Project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase II” collected and described the experience and practices of youth work in the context of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine in the period after 24 February 2022. The collection includes twenty stories of experience and reflection, both team projects, initiatives of youth centres and non-governmental organisations etc., and individual experience directed at social, cultural, educational, environmental transformations implemented by, with and for young people.

The project "Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III" was  launched within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2023-2026 “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction”. The project aims to ensure that young people in Ukraine benefit from participation in youth policy and quality youth work to strengthen their own resilience and well-being, to exercise their human rights and freedoms, democratic participation and citizenship in wartime and post-war times.

• News, Council of Europe resources in the field of youth and open announcements for participation in the project activities can be found here.