On 29 August the plenary session of the Global Youth Summit ‘Youth in the Global Agenda’ was held at the Kazan City Hall within the framework of the International Program ‘Kazan – 2022 OIC Youth Capital’.
The event was attended by representatives of 69 countries. They were young politicians, public figures, representatives of ministries and departments, as well as religious figures.
The session began with a recitation of ayats of the Holy Quran by Mufti of the Republic of Tatarstan Kamil Samigullin.
President of the Republic of Tatarstan, Chairman of the Group of Strategic Vision ‘Russia – Islamic World’ Rustam Minnikhanov read out a greeting from Russian President Vladimir Putin to the participants and guests of the Kazan Global Youth Summit.
In his speech, the President of the Republic of Tatarstan reminded that year Kazan was also the Youth Capital of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. ‘The selection of Kazan as the OIC Youth Capital confirms the high level of relations between Russia and this authoritative structure. States of the Islamic world are our traditional partners in addressing many pressing issues of the regional and global agenda, in the efforts to build a more democratic world order. It is important that young people are becoming increasingly involved in such constructive multifaceted interaction. Hundreds delegates from dozens of countries, representatives of various public and student organizations, expert centres and government agencies responsible for youth policy have come to Kazan. I am convinced that they will have a great opportunity to attend substantial discussions, identify promising projects for long-term joint work, including in social and cultural spheres, as well as in the field of technological innovations and entrepreneurship. There is no doubt that the youth meeting in Kazan will serve to consolidate mutual understanding and trust between the peoples of our countries’.
Rustam Minnikhanov expressed his gratitude to the guests of honor and partners for their support and participation – to heads of ministries and departments of foreign states, federal and regional authorities, diplomats, public organizations and mass media.
The President of Tatarstan noted that the decision to declare Kazan as the OIC Youth Capital was an evidence of recognition of the merits and achievements of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Tatarstan in the field of youth policy: ‘It is the first time such a status is granted to an observer country of the OIC. The status is especially significant due to the fact that this year we are celebrating the 1100th anniversary of the adoption of Islam by Volga Bulgaria. By the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the anniversary is being celebrated at the state level. The adoption of Islam by our ancestors in 922 played an important role in the development of our state and the establishment of Islam as one of the leading religions of the country. We attach particular importance to interaction with the Muslim world and the OIC. In 2003, in Malaysia, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin announced our country’s intention to join the OIC as an observer, noting that about 200 million Muslims living in Russia had every right to feel part of the Muslim world. Tatarstan is proud by its contribution to the development of relations with this authoritative organization’.
Rustan Minnikhanov also stressed the support of the OIC in organizing the annual International Economic Summit ‘KazanSummit’. This is an effective economic instrument of the Group of Strategic Vision ‘Russia – Islamic World’, which Rustam Minnikhanov heads on behalf of Vladimir Putin.
President Rustam Minnikhanov told about the Republic’s activities to support social and political activity of young people: ‘Today in Kazan a number of projects are being implemented that integrate the creative potential of the youth. These include the Youth Assembly of the Peoples of Tatarstan, the Salat Youth Movement, which does a lot of work within the framework of the OIC, the World Forum of Tatar Youth, the Kazan Open Talent University, the Academy of Youth Diplomacy and others’.
Konstantin Shuvalov, Special Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Work and Interaction with the Organizations of the Islamic World, Ambassador-at-Large, Deputy Chairman of the Group of Strategic Vision ‘Russia – Islamic World’, read out a welcome address by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In his speech, the diplomat noted that the choice of the city to host the Global Youth Summit was the most opportune one: ‘It is proof of Russia’s multifaceted relationship with the OIC member states and the broad international support for our interaction. Relations between Russia and the OIC countries are on the rise’. Konstantin Shuvalov expressed his hope that the youth summit would take place in a friendly atmosphere of mutual understanding and would contribute to the establishment of useful contacts and new constructive initiatives.
The plenary session was moderated by Taha Aikhan, the President of the International Organization ‘The Youth Forum of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’. In his opening speech he said that a quarter of youth worldwide aged from 15 to 29 are economically vulnerable, especially now, during the time of the global crisis: ‘Problems of young people are very acute – lack of opportunities for them, lack of participation in economic life, issues concerning culture and social life and health. At this summit, we will shed light on these problems and try to find ways to address them’.
Continuing the topic raised by Taha Aikhan, Denis Ashirov, Director of the Department of State Youth Policy and Educational Activities of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, spoke about the role of young people in the global agenda and shared Russia’s experience in this area. He noted that there were more than 40 million young people aged from 14 to 35 in the Russian Federation and with such a large and diverse audience the work was carried out every day: ‘Rosmolodezh wants to find an approach to everybody, and this is our task’. Denis Ashirov stressed that Russia and the OIC countries shared common values in implementing youth policy: ‘Creating opportunities for young people is a common task for all state and public institutions that work in the field of youth policy. Therefore, we pay special attention to the establishment of a unified interdepartmental system of youth policy together with federal and regional authorities, large non-profit organizations and business’. He said that annually Rosmolodezh implemented a number of programs to exchange experience between Russian and foreign young people. The organization’s priorities include developing cooperation within the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Eurasian Economic Union, the OIC, BRICS and the Arctic Council.
Speaking at the Youth Summit, Oleg Mashkovtsev, Deputy Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District, suggested creating a system of incentives for youth self-realization and development at the regional and municipal levels: ‘The whole system and the whole vertical of power should be involved’. He also spoke about how the work with young people in the Volga federal district was implemented and noted that each of the district public projects was aimed at solving a specific social problem and target group in the youth environment, so that any young person could choose which project to participate in. ‘In 2019, more than 530 people took part in our district projects, and during the pandemic, with the use of distant technologies, almost 1,5 million people,’ Oleg Mashkovtsev said.
ISESCO Director General for Education, Science and Culture Salim bin Mohammad Al-Maliki joined the Global Summit session via video link. He noted that Kazan was home to youth full of enthusiasm and creative spirit, and that it was not for nothing that Kazan became the OIC Youth Capital. ‘Over 10 years, Kazan has hosted over 12 major international sporting events, as well as other competitions and forums. This city is one of the fastest growing – in 2014 it was ranked third in Europe and eighth in the world in this regard. Therefore, Kazan’s experience deserves careful study. But the most important reason for Kazan’s appreciation is its national and cultural diversity’. He said that by 2030 young people would constitute 23% of the world’s population and that was something we needed to get ready for: ‘Today’s unresolved problems will have to be solved by them. And the main problem of young people is that older generation makes decisions for them’.
In his speech, Mr. Salim bin Mohammad Al-Maliki suggested ways to address youth issues, which included, among other things, creating a new psychological environment driven by global trends, programs in technology and innovations for youth and, of course, space research. He noted that ISESCO had provided numerous scholarships to encourage young people’s interest in mastering modern scientific knowledge.
Saeed Mohammad Al Nazari, Director General of the UAE Federal Authority for Youth Affairs, responsible for youth affairs at the Prime Minister’s Office, has implemented over 15 national projects and developed youth policy in the Emirates during his career. At the plenary session he told about the experience of his country in the field of comprehensive support to the youth that, like the country itself, started from scratch very recently: ’50 years ago our country was a desert, today our youth launched the first astronaut from an Arab country into space! In another 50 years, we will be celebrating what we are working on today!’ Mr. Al Nazari highly praised the work of youth organizations in Kazan. Thus, he visited the Salat Tatarstan Republican Youth Public Foundation and noted that similar organizations also existed in the UAE in the form of youth hubs with total amount of 120 in each corner of the Emirates.
The plenary session of the Global Youth Summit was also attended by Fathalla Al-Zani, Minister of Youth in Libya, who said that Tatarstan was a very important region for the work of the OIC. ‘It is especially gratifying that this year Tatarstan and Russia are celebrating the 1100th anniversary of the adoption of Islam by Volga Bulgaria. The Republic of Tatarstan actively promotes youth policy within the OIC. This makes it possible to bring peoples closer together and build bridges of mutual understanding. I am happy to be here and share Libya’s experience in this regard. More than 10 years ago Libya faced great challenges; a struggle broke out between representatives of different layers of society. This has undoubtedly had a negative impact on our young people. During these years, we have been working on mistakes and introducing the new. The government has established a new ministry – the Ministry of Youth – which has set a number of tasks that are being implemented, not only in the middle of the country, but also in remote regions. We are planning to establish the first Youth Parliament in Libya by means of electronic elections. We are experiencing positive results from our activities and intend to cooperate with the Youth Forum. I hope that the Council of Ministers of the state will soon assume the role of a full participant in this international association of youth,’ he added.
Amina bint Al-Hajri, Director General for Cultural, Social and Family Affairs of the OIC, was present at the plenary session. In her speech, she noted that work with youth had always been a priority for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation: ‘Youth should not become a political exclusion’. Ms. Al-Hajri added that she was happy to enjoy the beauty of the historic city of Kazan. At the end of her speech, she invited all the participants of the Summit to the upcoming conference organized by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to be held in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia).
The President of the OIC Youth Forum, Taha Aikhan, spoke on behalf of the organization. He told about the work of the Forum, which helped young people to participate in all processes taking place at the global level: ‘We are one of the leading agencies that implement the OIC country development strategy. We are supported by the ministries of the OIC countries,’ Taha Aikhan added. In his speech, the President of the OIC Youth Forum highlighted the importance of preserving the cultural heritage of any country.
Airat Gatiyatov, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, speaking at the plenary session, pointed out the projects that the Ministry was implementing together with the Department of State Youth Policy and Educational Activities (Rosmolodezh). He also noted the fact that youth representatives in Russia already occupied high positions, which showed that the state was open-minded to such tendencies.
The plenary session ended with a speech by the Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin. He told about how the city had changed over the past decades and how Kazan had become a real capital for Muslim youth. ‘Kazan is not called the Northern Capital of Islam by chance. Islam is an important part of our city’s DNA, its history and culture. This year, we are celebrating the 1100th anniversary of the adoption of Islam by Volga Bulgaria, of which Kazan was and still is a part. Next year marks the 200th anniversary of Kazan publishing the world’s first printed Quran in accordance with traditions. The spirit of faith is alive and well in Kazan. 40% of parishioners in Kazan’s mosques are young people. The halal industry is developing dynamically in the city. We actively restore such historical distinctive neighborhoods as the Old Tatar Sloboda,’ Ilsur Metshin noted. The Mayor of the city drew attention to the fact that today’s Islamic traditions that had been lost during the Soviet times were largely revived by young people: ‘They create cultural projects that are interesting and in demand not only among the Islamic youth, but also among all residents and guests of the city’. He did not forget to mention the ongoing dialogue of cultures that is encouraged at the federal level: ‘In Kazan there are both churches and mosques and it speaks of centuries-old peaceful coexistence of people of different religions and nationalities. In this interaction, we develop and learn new things’.
‘Kazan is one of the leaders in the field of youth policy in Russia. Over the past 10-12 years, the city has radically renewed its social culture for young people. In the last five years alone, over 70% of youth policy facilities in Kazan have been renewed. These facilities open up absolutely new opportunities for education and development,’ Ilsur Metshin added. At the end of his speech, the Mayor wished all the participants of the Global Youth Summit success in their activities.
The work of the session ‘Peace. Image of the Future through the Eyes of Youth’ resulted in a summit resolution reflecting current youth challenges and approaches to addressing them, presenting a comprehensive action plan that formed the basis for the further development of international youth relations between the Russian Federation and the OIC countries.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"