THE SEVENTH BH YOUTH PARLIAMENT � SPACE/OBJECTS FOR THE YOUTH

Space/Objects for the youth is a very important issue if we know that more than 55% of the youth organizations rents the offices in which they work, 23% has no facilities whatsoever, in a situation in which over 100 Youth and Culture Clubs in B&H � which existed in the former system � has been appropriated, robbed of furniture or devastated, and when the state doesn�t find it necessary to provide the facilities for the activities of the youth. Over the past two years, the youth of several cities organized campaigns to reoccupy the space, and some even succeeded in such efforts...
When and where? Tuesday, November 11, for the first time the BH Youth Parliament will be held in Banja Luka, from 13:30 to 16:30 hours.

Who shall participate? Some 40 participants will take part in BHYP (representatives of the authorities, governmental bodies in charge of youth related issues from different levels of government, representatives of the youth organizations in B&H, and, as guests and observers, the representatives of international organizations that work in the field of youth policies).

How can you apply for participation? The Governmental bodies for youth related issues and the international organizations will be contacted directly in terms of their participation in BHYP. Several places shall be reserved for the other governmental institutions that express a wish to participate. Having in mind that this is not an educational or training seminar, but rather a platform to be used for lobbying and giving recommendations to the authorities, the criteria used for the selection of the representatives of the youth NGOs shall be the long experience in working with youth, as well as experience in maintaining contact with the authorities. Another important criterion shall be the eventual participation in the campaigns for return of the facilities that belonged to the youth organizations in the past. The representatives of the youth NGOs which fulfill these criteria should apply directly to OIA, by sending an e-mail to oia@oiabih.info by November 2, 2003. The application will be sent to you in reply to your message. By November 5, the selected participants shall be contacted about the technical information and working materials. Because of the restricted capacities of the event, the gender, regional representation and the profile of the organizations that applied shall also be taken into account.

OIA, with the support of the Open Society B&H Fund, shall cover the traveling expenses for all youth organizations, and shall organize a buffet for all participants of the BHYP.

Previous BHYPs: Over 200 youth leaders and workers have participated in the past five BH Youth Parliaments organized by OIA, coming from over 30 towns and cities, as well as a great number of youth organizations and networks and government representatives, including the President of the B&H Presidency, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of B&H, and other political officials coming from different political parties in the two entities. Five different subjects were discussed, all of them closely related to the development of youth policy in B&H, and after each session of BHYP, recommendations were prepared, some of which were quickly implemented (for example, the Resolution on Youth, which was adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of B&H).

For additional information, contact Merima Zupcevic, Administrative Coordinator of OIA at oia@oiabih.infor, or at the Phone/Fax: 033 209 753