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Young people in Greece are about to gain a lot of democratic influence in municipalities , Source: Semina Psichogiopoulou / Unsplash
To have a chance at the title, municipalities need to work with people between 14 and 29 to create a joint and coherent policy programme
On 29 March, the Greek Central Union of Municipalities (KEDE) announced a new initiative to modernise local and urban regions in the country - the National Youth Capital. According to an official statement, the title will be granted annually, similar to its EU counterpart.
However, the initiative aims to strengthen the ties between municipalities and young people, thus promoting the idea of an involved democracy, where different social groups collaborate with authorities to produce convergent solutions.
This is because every municipality which applies for the title will have to do so with a year-long programme developed between local officials and young people between the ages of 14 and 29.
The initiative was developed by the Greek Ministry of Education working in tandem with the country’s Central Union of Municipalities. Furthermore, it was sparked by the European Year of Youth 2022.
Mayor of Trikala and President of the Central Union of Municipalities of Greece, Dimitris Papastergiou, was quoted in an official statement explaining that local authorities have to aim to make young people happy to help them engage with democracy.
This, in many cases, does not mean telling them infrastructure must be postponed due to budgetary issues or political disputes in the local council. Instead, he claimed that young people want to hear solutions to their problems, that can be implemented.
The first Greek National Youth Capital will be awarded in 2024, however, according to officials, this would not be a token title, instead, it has clear goals focusing on youth empowerment and improving the quality of life in municipalities.
The goals include strengthening youth trust in institutions and promoting active participation in society; promoting equality, transparency and inclusion; bridging the gap between traditionally apolitical youth and the local government.
To have a chance to win the title, a municipality has to have a programme developed with local youth that aims to fulfil these goals while meeting certain criteria:
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