The International Youth day in Gyumri was launched with the “Value Generating Youth” Youth camp that brought together more than 100 of young people from Gyumri and other communities of Shirak region.

“Today, young people are not limited by anything, they just need self-confidence to demonstrate their skills and they will achieve everything," mentioned Sevada Arakelyan, one of the young participants of the event.

Anna Karapetyan, another young participant of the initiative said: ”Such kind of initiatives are very useful for my personal development and help me to improve my self-expression skills”.

The event was initiated by Gyumri Youth Initiative Centre, UNFPA,  Info Centre for “Erasmus+ Youth and European Solidarity Corps” Programmes in Armenia, Enterprise Incubator Foundation and Gyumri Technological Centre.

"Shirak has always been a pioneer in youth initiatives and activism, and the same is now. Cooperation between the state and non-state sectors is very important in this matter, because good ideas are generated and brought to life thanks to such kind of cooperation. It is important for me that our young people will create values, and will come up with initiatives that are in favour of our society, our country, and we are always open for cooperation, discussions and joint work," in her welcoming remarks stated Nazeli Baghdasaryan, the Governor of Shirak Province of the RA. 

“It's been 23 years since 1999 that the UN General Assembly declared the International Youth Day which has been celebrated all over the world. Today we have bright, hardworking young people who have many dreams and want to contribute to the development of society and the country. We must do everything together so that our young people have an opportunity to fulfil their dreams and realize their potential. I am sure that by joining all our efforts, we will be able to achieve progress and make our dreams come true," said Lusine Sargsyan, Gender Programme  Analyst, UNFPA.

"Today seems to be the only day that we can use publicly and talk about the problems of young people highlighting also the opportunities that exist and we are also obliged to create those opportunities, because one of the indicators of the Sate development is measured by the fact how young people are advanced in the country. The Gyumri Youth Initiative Centre, together with our good partners, succeed in creating such an environment where we will have young people who create value in Armenia, and this is the reason, why we have chosen this slogan for the event," says Artur Najarian, President of Council of Gyumri Youth Initiative Centre NGO.  

During the first part of the Youth Camp there were keynote speeches by the invited guest-speakers on the topics of “The importance of Youth Participation in Politics”, presented by Nazeli Baghdasaryan, the Governor of Shirak Province of the RA , “Protection of personal data” presented by the head of Personal Data Protection Agency, Gevorg Hayrapetyan, as well as Anna Hovhannisyan, the “Population and Development” program manager of UNFPA delivered her speech under the International Youth Day 2022 theme: Intergenerational Solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages.

The keynote speeches were followed by the workshops covering the following topics: “Self-recognition, self-improvement”, “Art and me”, “Moving from Yerevan to Gyumri: Entrepreneurship and tourism”, “Motivation and me: Whatever you don’t know about yourself”, “Career planning with coaching elements”.

An “EXPO FAIR” was followed, where educational and job various opportunities were presented by different educational institutions and companies.

The International Youth Day event in Gyumri was also supported by the Shirak Regional Government, Gyumri Municipality, “Level Event Company”, “ZAVOD” Music Club and “Tsayg” Television.

Photos by Gyumri Youth Initiative Centre