Today, via Zoom, the NGO Info-center promoted the key findings and recommendations from the survey of the attitudes of civil society organizations and young people about the processes of creating and created policies for young people ” Western Balkans Youth in Policy Making Processes”.
The research on the youth policies and policy-making processes in the Western Balkans, conducted as part of the regional project entitled Regional Youth Dialogue for Europe – RYDE, provides an analysis of the current viewpoints held by both youth organisations and youths themselves, regarding youth policies in this region. The research covers six economies: Albania, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
In the period from August to October 2023, for the purposes of the research, a total of 151 interviews were conducted with representatives of CSOs from the Western Balkans. The interviews were followed by an online survey conducted during October and November 2023. 1,366 young individuals from the Western Balkan countries participated.
Elena Simonoska from the NGO Info-center presented key findings and recommendations at the level of the Western Balkans.
Across the economies of the Western Balkans, common threads emerge in the assessment of youth policies and policy-making processes. While CSOs in most countries are involved in the policy-making process, young people consistently face limited participation in the policy-making process and encounter obstacles such as insufficient resources or political support.
The efficiency of the policy-making apparatus is a common concern in all Western Balkan economies. No policy-making process scored an efficiency higher than 3.2 on a scale of 1 to 5. Bureaucratic difficulties and a lack of transparency are common obstacles impeding progress.
All respondents believe that the needs of vulnerable categories of young people (youth with disabilities, young people from the LGBTQ+ community, young Roma, young people from rural areas, young members of ethnic minority groups and young people from other marginalized communities) are not properly and adequately addressed by the existing policies.
Researchers Aleksandar Stojanovski and Mariglen Demiri spoke in detail about the situation in North Macedonia.
In our country, the research of youth organizations included 25 interviews with representatives of various organizations, while the online survey collected 251 responses from young civil and political activists, scientists and journalists.
Concerns about youth policies focus on their general ineffectiveness and the need for specific laws targeting different youth groups in areas such as employment and culture. The proposals for improvement emphasize the greater involvement of young people, changes in the conditions for organizational inclusion and the creation of inter-sectoral cooperation.
Online respondents expressed different views on the quality of existing youth policies, with almost 85% believing that these policies inadequately meet the needs of young people. Key priorities they identified include employment, education, housing, mental health support and youth participation.
While respondents demonstrated knowledge of the policy-making process, they are looking for increased efficiency and clearer mechanisms for involving young activists. Regional differences were noted, with divided opinions on the inclusiveness of national and local policy-making processes.
Challenges facing young activists include lack of political support, limited resources and political polarization.
The results highlight the challenges in the landscape of youth policies in North Macedonia, emphasizing the importance of improving the implementation of policies, encouraging sectoral cooperation and improving the mechanisms for involving young people in the policy-making process. The findings highlight the critical need for tailored policies that address the diverse needs of young people and increased transparency for more effective implementation.
Read more on situation in each country in the Survey Summary.
Download the full text of the Report: Western Balkans Youth in Policy Making Processes
The research on the youth policies and policy-making processes in the Western Balkans has been conducted as part of the regional project entitled Regional Youth Dialogue for Europe – RYDE. The project is funded by the European Union. The project has been implemented by the Center for Democracy Foundation from Serbia in cooperation with civil society organisations (CSOs) operating in the Western Balkans: Academy of European Integrations and Negotiations and Youth Act Center (Albania), Kosovar Stability Initiative (Kosovo*), Network of Progressive Initiatives (Bosnia and Herzegovina), NGO Info Center Foundation (North Macedonia) and Regional Academy for Democratic Development (Serbia).
