Youngsters get ‘life skills’

THE Çatalköy Development and Culture Organisation

(Çader) held an event to mark the United Nations July 15 “World Youth Skills Day”.

Çader hosted 22 young people aged 15 to 24 for the event with the theme of “gaining skills through volunteering” as part of their “Nature Protection Campaign”.

The campaign is funded by the Belgium-based VGP Foundation and administered by NABU (Nature And Biodiversity Conservation Union) International, one of the oldest and largest environment associations in Germany.

“Apart from the fun and the pleasure of making new friends, volunteering can mean the development of important life skills,” a statement from Çader said.

“Visiting guests, from Nature and Environmental backgrounds, were on hand to discuss which skills can be acquired and the advantages that these skills would bring in the future to both, the individuals and society.

“Teamwork, organisational skills, networking and personal development skills were among the key skills discussed.

“Particular importance was attached to nature and wildlife protection, especially birds, turtles and trees.

“Waste separation, paper making and wood chipping were the activities where everyone joined in. These activities were introduced as examples of how volunteering

for civil society organisations can influence care for the environment.

“The youngsters were from Girne and Çatalköy and they were entertained by the local village band Teen Spirit.

“Food for the evening was prepared by members and friends of Çader and was enjoyed with homemade lemon squash. Çatalköy Municipality supported the event by providing chairs and tables.

“The evening was a good opportunity for our young citizens to learn about volunteering as a way of acquiring new skills.”

The UN said that this year’s World Youth Skills Day took place in a “challenging context” due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

It said that the UN’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) estimates that schools were either fully or partially closed

for more than 30 weeks between March 2020 and May

2021 in half the countries of the world.

“In late June, 19 countries still had full school closures, affecting nearly 157 million learners, and 768 million more learners were affected by partial school closures,” the UN said.

It added that the International Labour Organisation estimates that global youth employment fell by 8.7 percent in 2020, compared to 3.7 per cent for adults, with the most pronounced fall seen in middle-income countries.

“The consequences of this disruption to the early labour market experiences of youth could last for years,” the UN

warned.