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The development of a Youth Involvement Strategy in 2011 signified the Movement's commitment to youth involvement at all levels of Scouting and in decision making. This led to the 40th World Scout Conference in Slovenia in 2014 making youth engagement one of the six strategic priority areas for the World Scouting.
The strategy recognizes that young people as active citizens have a right to be involved in making decisions that affect their lives. Not only is it their right to be involved, but it's also core to the Scout Method.
Here are some of the key ways participants engage in making decisions during the Youth Forum:
To learn skills in cooperation and lobbying, the teams must get their proposals to be seconded by at least one other International Team before they can be discussed and voted on. The decisions reached will are included in the final Youth Forum report to the Conference.
Recommendations are decisions proposed to the Africa Scout Conference which provide direction for the future of the Scout Movement in the Africa region. Any recommendations proposed by the Youth Forum will be considered by the Conference if subsequently proposed by Member Organizations.
Youth delegates are invited to actively engage in the decision-making of the Youth Forum and Conference to help shape the future of Scouting. This process is supported by a voting protocol outlined in the Rules of Procedures for both events.
During the Youth Forum, participants learn about and engage with the candidates to hear their ideas and plans for their candidacy.
In the end, they vote to elect the six who will become their voice and support further strengthening of Scouting in Africa's youth engagement work.
The outcomes of the decisions made by young people at the Youth Forum are included in a report to the Conference sharing the opinions and perspectives of young people about what is most important to them for the future of Scouting.
This is just one step in a longer journey as a key part of the Scout Method that enables Scouts to continuously strengthen their ability and experiences to be involved in decision-making at the unit level, institutionally and in their communities.
Visit https://africa.scoutconference.org to learn more about the 9th Africa Scout Youth Forum and 18th Africa Scout Conference.
Nelson Opany - Senior Manager, Communications and Partnerships, World Scout Bureau Africa Support Centre Nairobi
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