Background

Young people s problems are a priority for the Municipality of Vulchi Dol. The reason for this is the decreasing number of youth and their insufficient involvement in local government. In December, 1999, mayor Vassil Vassilev invited the young people to a meeting that was also attended by deputy-mayor Ivan Dolski, municipal secretary Penka Dimova and Municipal Council chair Dimitar Tsvetkov. Discussed were problems related to education, social activities and culture as well as possible solutions. Encouraged by the cooperation opportunities and motivated by their desire to help the development of their community and to make their life more interesting, the young people established the Horizon Youth Club.

Practice

The project was developed by the Horizon Youth Club, with the assistance of the Our World Association, Varna. The project duration was four months, from November, 1999 to February, 2000. The goal of the project was to apply a new approach to young people s involvement in finding solutions to local problems. The idea was to have the young people themselves create conditions for their professional development in Vulchi Dol, and to stay to live and work there.

The main activity under the project was a survey of people aged 16 to 40 on the opportunities for their professional development, recreation and employment. The analysis of the survey data showed that more than half of the interviewees were willing to do something to change the current situation. At the same time, 48% of the young people have no organizational experience. 36% of the interviewees stated that they will continue to live in the municipality. However, the fact that 34% of the youth state that they will stay only if their local problems are solved, is a reason for worry.

In cooperation with the Municipality, the Horizon Youth Club organized visits of theatrical companies from Varna and Dobrich, funded concerts and topical evenings, as well as the publishing of a collection of poems by young authors from Vulchi Dol. A ski slope and a T-bar were built in the Kushu Bair area, a fitness facility was established in the city and the movie theater was restored.

A special mailbox for citizen recommendations and ideas was established during the project. The mailbox allowed everyone to share their views.

The final phase of the project included the Vulchi Dol s Youth: a Partner in Local Government conference, held on February 23, 2000.

The implementation of this project has marked the successful start of Horizon Youth Club s functioning. Now, the Club needs to institutionalize and to initiate the implementation of the youth participation strategy that was developed.

The municipal management is convinced that finding effective solutions to young people s problems is possible only if the youth are involved. At the same time, the Municipal Council believes that dialogue through discussions, open meetings, submission of reports and draft decisions for Council approval, should be further developed. There is an idea to let the young people convene and facilitate an extraordinary Council meeting. During the meeting, the roles of the mayor, the Council chair and the municipal secretary would be played by young people who might be in charge of local government in the future.

Results

The Horizon Youth Club, encouraged and assisted by the municipal administration and the Municipal Council, surveyed young people s willingness to get involved in local government and to try to find solutions to their own problems related to education, culture and professional development. As a result of the successful cooperation, the Municipal Council has planned to expand the opportunities for dialogue and involvement of young people. On the other hand, the municipal administration has committed to:
appoint a liaison for youth relations;
revise community center activities in the different communities;
clarify and raise the issues of establishing an Employment Association;
continue to encourage job creation and the development of new industries.