These days Kazan is hosting the first Russian-Egyptian Youth Forum which brought together 30 youth representatives of the Arab Republic of Egypt and 30 young Russians at the age of 18-35.
According to the organizers, the program of the forum includes plenary sessions, development of a roadmap, meetings with the expert community, as well as cultural and sports programs. Over the four days, the participants will discuss the current state and prospects for further development of cooperation between Russian and Egyptian youth in such areas as volunteerism, creative industries, public diplomacy, youth entrepreneurship and innovations.
The Forum experts include representatives of the Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Rossotrudnichestvo Federal Agency, the Strategic Vision Group ‘Russia – Islamic World’, the Embassy of Egypt to Russia and others. The Forum is organized by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs, the Ministry for Youth Affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Academy of Youth Diplomacy Public Organization. The event is held within the framework of the Project Office for International Youth Cooperation in the area of ‘Russia – Organization of Islamic Cooperation’.
The opening ceremony was attended by Chairman of the Council of Young Diplomats of the Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs Konstantin Kolpakov, Member of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Marat Bariev, Deputy Director of the Department of Youth Projects and Programmes of the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs Tatiana Seliverstova, Deputy Chairman of the State Council of the Republic of Tatarstan, Executive Director of the Nonprofit Organization ‘Republican Fund for Revival of Historical and Cultural Monuments of the Republic of Tatarstan’ Tatiana Larionova, Deputy Minister for Youth Affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan Tatiana Larionova, Head of the Department of the Ministry for Youth and Sports Affairs of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abdullah Elbatesh, First Secretary of the Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Russian Federation Mohamed Shaki Ahmed Elabrak and others.
Konstantin Kolpakov, Chairman of the Council of Young Diplomats of the Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs
According to Chairman of the Council of Young Diplomats of the Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs Konstantin Kolpakov, who spoke at the opening ceremony, such events lay a good foundation for interaction between young people of friendly states. ‘In this regard, I would like to thank the organizers of the event. Today, when global restructuring of the system of international relations is being observed, it is of special importance to have strong horizontal ties at the youth level’, the speaker assured. According to him, Egyptians are among the most active participants of the Forum of Young Diplomats from OIC countries to be held at the Kazan Summit platform from 28 to 30 July.
Tatiana Seliverstova, Deputy Director of the Department of Youth Projects and Programmes of the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs
‘It is important for us that as the result of this forum we will be able not only to establish friendly relations, but also to create new programs and projects that we can implement together for the benefit of the Russian-Egyptian humanitarian relations’, Tatiana Seliverstova highlighted in her turn.
Tatiana Larionova, Deputy Chairman of the State Council of the Republic of Tatarstan, Executive Director of the Nonprofit Organization ‘Republican Fund for Revival of Historical and Cultural Monuments of the Republic of Tatarstan’
Tatiana Larionova, addressing the participants of the forum, reminded that the past year 2020 had been declared the year of Humanitarian Cooperation between our countries, but due to the epidemiological situation in the world it had been postponed to 2021. ‘I am sincerely glad that despite all the difficulties we have managed to come together at the international event. The year 2020 marked the 15th anniversary of Russia’s accession to OIC as an observer state, and in this regard we understand that now it is extremely important to boost youth cooperation in this field. As we know, the republic of Tatarstan is one of the leading industrial and innovative regions of the country, and is at the forefront of interaction with other regions and countries’.
Abdullah Elbatesh, Head of the Department of the Ministry for Youth and Sports Affairs of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abdullah Elbatesh, addressing the audience, stressed that young people made up 50% of the present and 100% of the future. ‘It is the young generation that is the main driving force between the two countries and the force for achieving the sustainable development we are striving for’, Elbatesh is convinced. According to the speaker, the Egyptian youth makes up 67& of the population and they are eager to use this tremendous potential for the benefit of their country and society. He thanked the organizers and wished the participants to consolidate friendly and professional ties between the youth and relevant public authorities of the two countries.
After the opening ceremony, delegates took part in a plenary session, during which they discussed the role of youth in the development of international cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Arab Republic of Egypt.