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Home Newsroom News and press releases Youth from Albania and Serbia wrap up OSCE-supported Summer School in Tirana on inter-cultural dialogue in the digital era
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Youth from Albania and Serbia wrap up OSCE-supported Summer School in Tirana on inter-cultural dialogue in the digital era

TIRANA 30 July 2015

TIRANA, 30 July 2015 – Some 34 young people from Albania and Serbia today completed a five-day long Summer School in Tirana on inter-cultural dialogue in the digital era, where they discussed and shared experiences and ideas on challenges facing the youth in their countries.

Assisted by a team of Albanian and Serbian trainers and experts from the two countries’ Ministries of Youth, the participants focused on the involvement of youth in public and political life, youth policies, the promotion of democratic values and fostering of cross-cultural dialogue, the role of media in inter-cultural dialogue, and ways to challenge prejudices and stereotypes.

Albania’s Minister of Social Welfare and Youth Blendi Klosi, and the Albanian Minister of Culture Mirela Kumbaro welcomed the participants today. The Head of the OSCE Presence in Albania, Ambassador Florian Raunig, and the First Counsellor of the Serbian Embassy in Tirana, Jugoslav Djordjević, accompanied the participants in their meetings.

“Deepening relations and building bridges through young people is the best way to strengthen mutual understanding, co-operation and friendship. Therefore, the youth is a vital force to enhance the further integration of our region,” Ambassador Raunig said.

The event was jointly organized by Albania’s Social Welfare and Youth Ministry, Serbia’s Ministry of Sports and Youth, and in co-operation with the National Youth Service of Serbia and supported by the OSCE Presence in Albania and the OSCE Mission to Serbia.

The School is the result of the Memorandum of Understanding on Youth concluded in 2014 by the Prime Ministers of Albania and Serbia with the goal of building bridges between the youth of both countries.

The OSCE Presence in Albania has been active in recent years through a series of projects aimed at strengthening a sense of civic engagement and responsibility among young people, helping them to have a voice in the decision-making process.