Activities

Ongoing Projects

A more complete Future for Europe – CompletEU

The project aims to empower young people to be active citizens and agents of positive change across Europe, promoting EU values and a European identity. It focuses on enhancing youth participation in democratic processes and elections, fostering connections among youth, and providing practical toolkits for quality youth work. By uniting youth organizations from the EU, Eastern Partnership, and Western Balkan countries, it seeks to foster trust and enable young people to shape a shared vision for Europe. Through equal partnership, the project aims to centralize young people in redefining democracy and peace, expanding and diversifying perspectives on Europe.

Project activities:

– Explore existing concepts of democracy and peace, specific to each country and define a new common youth agenda for Europe moving forward
– Expand the capacities of youth organisations and young people in the consortium countries through non-formal educational trainings and a truly Europe-wide decision-making simulation
– Enact the common vision through advocacy and communication activities by the young people who have been empowered by the process
– Increase meaningful youth participation in EU and national elections in 2024 – 2025.

Project partners:

– JEF Europe
– National Youth Council of Ukraine
– National Youth Council Serbia
– National Youth Council Moldova
– National Youth Congress Albania
– National Youth Council Georgia

Period of implementation: December 2023 – November 2025
Donor: European Commission

Art of Activism

The Art of Activism (AoA) project aims to enhance collaboration among partner organizations, focusing on activism and advocacy through art and culture. By fostering a community of youth activists in the realm of youth rights, the project seeks to elevate the recognition of youth work and empower young people to initiate change. Through tailored training programs, AoA equips youth workers and organizations with the necessary knowledge, skills, and values to support young people effectively. By integrating artistic and cultural approaches, participants are inspired to address social challenges creatively and effect broad societal change. Ultimately, the project endeavors to empower young people to assert their rights, engage in democratic processes, and become key agents of positive transformation in Europe. Through networking opportunities and cooperative learning, AoA also facilitates the growth of a platform for future activists dedicated to advancing youth rights.

Project objectives:

– To introduce youth workers and youth activists to the theory and practice of activism, its development throughout history and the impact it had on generational changes;
– Encourage youth workers and activists to reflect on culture and art as a tool for responding to social challenges and changes;
– Ensure exchange of good practice, know-how and lessons learned;
– To strengthen the cooperation among participating organizations.

Project partners:

– Croatian Youth Network
– National Youth Council of Slovenia
– National Youth Council of Serbia
– National Youth Council of Romania
– National Youth Council of Malta

Period of implementation: September 2023 – December 2024
Donor: European Commission

Green Generation: Schools Engaged for Climate Action

The “Green Generation: Schools Engaged for Climate Action” project aims to encourage school communities to take an active role in climate action, improve energy efficiency, and promote sustainable practices. Through its diverse range of activities, the project seeks to raise awareness, strengthen capacities, and encourage cooperation, striving for a future in the Western Balkans that is resilient to climate change and independent in energy resources.

The project targets a total of 21 schools from the municipalities of: Berovo, Shtip, and Chair in North Macedonia, Valjevo in Serbia, Gjakovica in Kosovo, and Zivinice, Lopare, Gracanica in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The following project activities will be implemented in all schools: 21 awareness campaigns, school competitions, capacity building trainings, development of regional brochures, and 3 forums.

Project partners:

– Belgrade Open School
– Bonevet
– RESET Center for Sustainable Energy Transition Sarajevo

Period of implementation: August 2023 – ongoing
Donor: Foundation Open Society Macedonia

Independence of Youth Councils

The Independence of Youth Councils project aims to assess the current capacity of youth councils in participating in decision-making processes at both national and local levels. It examines the support provided by the state and how this relationship impacts their independence, ensuring authentic representation of young people in democratic processes.

The project’s main objectives include:

– Researching the legal and administrative environments of youth councils.
– Comparing these environments across different countries.
– Gathering good practices of cooperation between youth councils and authorities.
– Developing a training program to enhance civic competencies.
– Proposing EU-wide interventions through policy papers.

Project partners:

National Youth Forum Bulgaria
National Youth Council of Serbia
National Youth Council of Slovenia
National Youth Council of Latvia
National Youth Council of Romania
National Youth Council of Italy
National Youth Council of Spain
National Youth Council of Cyprus

Period of implementation: January 2023 – June 2024
Donor: European Commission

Virtual Internships for Inclusive Societies (VI4IS)

The main goal of the project is to improve access of young people, particularly those with fewer opportunities, to internship programs conducted within formal and non-formal education in Europe. Тhe project contributes to ensuring equal opportunities for all young people to develop the necessary skills and gain practical experience in order to smoothen the transition from education to the labor market and ensure that all young people have access to adequately funded non-formal education at all levels.

The main activities of the project are: broad consultation process on country level, assessment of virtual internships, exchange of knowledge and good practices, both country-based and transnational (national and EU level, between EU and non-EU countries), piloting new and improving existing virtual internships programmes across Europe.

Project partners:

Serbia – Belgrade Open School (Coordinator), Junior Achievement Serbia
Spain – Xano Channel – Association for Community Development
Italy – Pixel – International Education and Training Institution
Belgium – Junior Achievement Europe

Period of implementation: December  2022 – ongoing
Donor: European Commission

Gender gap action – enabling equal opportunities for girls and young women in North Macedonia

The main goal of the project is to support and encourage girls and young women aged 15 to 29 in North Macedonia to become more active in society and to create equal access to opportunities in the public life of the country, in the private sector and thus in the process of decision-making at local and national level. The project will develop and create communication products targeting the gender inequality gap for the general public, educating the public to be aware of gender biased roles, norms and attitudes.

The main project activities include: a detailed analysis of the socio-economic behavior of young women and girls, online and offline campaigns for gender equality, building the capacities of girls and young women through trainings for creating local and national policies, advocacy, and inclusion of the gender perspective, 20 public events in different cities on different topics adapted to the needs of young women and girls, a workshop on gender in the media with the top 10 media houses, 10 local youth initiatives led by young girls, creating local youth strategies for the inclusion of young women and girls at the local level in 4 municipalities, career guidance and counseling for at least 200 young women, internship and volunteering program for at least 200 young women, creation of a mobile app for internships at national and regional level.

Project partners: Stella Network

Period of implementation: December  2022 – ongoing
Donor: British Embassy in Skopje

YOUTH EMPOWERMENT INCUBATOR (YEI)

The main goal of the project is to increase youth participation and representation on national and European level. The project aims to strengthen the capacities of youth representative bodies; to create a joint platform for exchange of good practices and support in youth policy development and advocacy; and to design a comprehensive overview of positive practices in youth policy making and advocacy, containing different tools, mechanisms and resources utilized in order to successfully advocate for greater and more efficient participation of youth, thus replicating the positive experiences on a national level.

The main activities of the project are: six study visits in North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia, Serbia, Slovakia and Belgium, showcasing first-hand, evidence-based good practices related to the EU Youth Dialogue and European Youth Goals, developing policy briefs, creating advocacy campaigns for policy changes, national conferences on the importance of the EU Youth Dialogue and the lessons learned within the project.

Project partners:

Estonia – Estonian National Youth Council

Latvia –  National Youth Council of Latvia

Serbia – National Youth Council of Serbia

Slovakia – Youth Council of Slovakia

Period of implementation: April  2022 – ongoing
Donor: European Commission

 

 

YOUTH-INCLUSIVE LOCAL COMMUNITIES

The main goal of the project is to engage youth CSOs to support their local communities, utilize the existing mechanisms to participate in local policy and decision-making processes addressing their needs and the needs of their constituents.

The main activities of the project are: strengthening the capacities of youth organizations and local youth councils through a series of workshops, monitoring the implementation of the Law on Youth Participation and Youth, assessing the inclusiveness of youth in local self-governments in North Macedonia, producing policy recommendations, and supporting youth advocacy initiatives that increase the youth participation in public policy.

Project partners:

Local Community Development Foundation Stip

SFERA International Bitola

Youth Empowerment Platform YEP Gostivar

Period of implementation: March 2022 – ongoing
Donor: European Commission

 

 

Connecting Youth – Western Balkans Youth Cooperation Platform

Connecting Youth – Western Balkans Youth Cooperation Platform is an initiative of the Cooperation and Development Institute and is supported by Hanns Seidel Foundation. The main aim of the platform is to offer youth organizations, civil society organization, informal movements, groups, or young individuals from all the Western Balkans, a resource center where they can find partners for joint activities, exchange initiatives, youth projects, discuss cooperation ideas, build up joint activities, get advice, and implement those projects together. WB YCP also offers a wide array of existing initiatives, national, regional and EU-supported aimed at the youth and covering the Western Balkans. The platform will initially provide the functions of:

  1. Youth Organizations Repository: youth organizations, movements, informal groups, young researchers, etc. can register their profile and promote their activities;

  2. Partner Search: all beneficiaries of the platform that need to find contacts in one of the countries for their next project can use the filters to search the appropriate partner for their idea;

  3. Information resource center regarding the RYCO upcoming activities.

Period of implementation:  March 2018 – ongoing

Youth Wiki

Youth Wiki is an online encyclopedia of youth policy. The platform was created by the European Commission’s Executive Agency for Education, Audiovisual Activity and Culture. It is a comprehensive database of national structures, policies and activities for young people. Macedonia is one of 33 European countries that analyses the national youth policies divided into 10 chapters: youth policy management, volunteer activities, employment and entrepreneurship, social inclusion, participation, education and training, health and well-being, creativity and culture and the youth and the world and youth work. The stakeholder of the project is the National Agency for European Educational Programs and Mobility, and the National Youth Council of Macedonia is working on the analysis and updating of the chapters on the platform.

Period of implementation: October 2018 – ongoing
Donor: European Commission

MLADI.MK

MLADI.MK is a web platform for informing the young people, initiated and implemented by the National Youth Council of Macedonia (NYCM) in March 2016. Mladi.mk provides room for direct communication among organizations, institutions and young people for promoting different opportunities and sharing relevant information. Currently, the platform is used by 62 organizations, which, through their profiles on mladi.mk post calls and opportunities for education, trainings, volunteering, internships, jobs, competitions and events in Macedonia and abroad. Mladi.mk can be accessed through a few channels: its web-site, the mobile phone application mladi.mk (available for iOS and Android devices) and the mladi.mk page on Facebook. The mladi.mk website was supported by the USAID Civil Society Project implemented by the Foundation Open Society Macedonia, and the creation of the mladi.mk application was supported by the British Embassy Skopje as part of the project “Youth Participation”.

Period of implementation: 2016 – ongoing
Donors: USAID, British Embassy Skopje

Eurodesk

Eurodesk is a youth information network officially recognized as the Erasmus+ (2014-202) support network. Eurodesk currently operates in 35 countries, i.e. 37 offices and has 1098 multipliers around Europe. Its core mission is to raise awareness on learning mobility opportunities and encourage young people to become active citizens. As a Eurodesk information centre, NYCM can contribute in creating content for the European Youth Portal, the European Youth portal offers European and national information and opportunities in the interest of the young people living, studying and working across Europe. The portal shares data from 34 countries and is available in 28 languages.

Period of implementation: April 2018 – ongoing

Completed Projects

Social Entrepreneurship for Youth Employment

The main goal of the project is to encourage economic empowerment and development of youth-led social enterprises. Through various activities, the project will provide opportunities for capacity building for unemployed young people, and at the same time will lead them through a process of self-development and growth in the field of social entrepreneurship as a modern way of self-employment.

The project aims to establish a favorable environment for youth social entrepreneurship which would reduce youth unemployment; to strengthen the competencies and capacities of vulnerable young people; to promote youth-led social entrepreneurship; to involve young people in social enterprises as well as to provide space for raising funds for the implementation of new ideas for social enterprises.

The main activities of the project are: detailed analysis of social entrepreneurship, capacity building through soft skills training, entrepreneurship, fundraising and community involvement, financial support for social enterprises, web fundraising platform that will also serve as a national resource center for social entrepreneurship as well as creating a National Action Plan for Youth Employment 2022-2025.

Period of implementation: 15th of December 2021 – December 2023
Donor: European Comission

Reinforcement of support structures for NEETs in the entrepreneurial field

The E4NEETs project – “Reinforcement of support structures for NEETs in the entrepreneurial  field” aims to increase access to entrepreneurship for young people in the NEET group (Youth not in employment, education or training). The project will additionally offer opportunities for professionals working with NEET youth without specific social entrepreneurship expertise. The basic and planned activities of the project will build the necessary conditions for strengthening the skills of professionals working with NEET through informing the youth about entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship and training them to better guide and support young people towards entrepreneurship.

Еxpected results of the project are: the acquisition of new skills on entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship for the staff working with NEETs; a better awareness of NEETs about entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship; a better awareness of policy-makers and company executives on the stake of inserting NEETs and how to mobilize them; a transnational dissemination of these innovative methods across Europe and the Mediterranean area.

Implementation period: November 2021 – December 2023

Donor: European Commission

Balkans Youth: Linking Education, Abilities and Partnership Potential in Regional Employment Practice – Balkan Youth: linking education, skills and partnership potential in regional employment practices

The main goal of the project is to contribute to youth entrepreneurial opportunities and strengthen the employment prospects of young people in the Western Balkans.

The main activities of the project are: national conferences on entrepreneurship, capacity building training, webinars and mentoring of CSOs (Civil Society Organisations), promotion of the participation of student companies in the educational systems of the Western Balkans, regional public policy document, job shadowing for CSOs, study visit. Through this project, there will be an opportunity for mentoring and Sub-granting civil society organisations and student companies.

Target groups of the project are student companies, young people and students, civil society organisations, teachers, high schools, parliaments, chambers of commerce and decision makers.

Project partners:
Serbia – Junior Achievement Serbia, Western Balkans Institute
Albania – Junior Achievement of Albania
Turkey – JA Turkey
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Social Innovation Incubator MUNJA
Montenegro – Student Business Association
Belgium – JA Europe

Period of realisation: March 1, 2020 – February 28, 2023
Donor: European Commission 

MLADIHUB – BUILDING EMPLOYMENT SKILLS, COMPETENCIES AND NETWORKING FOR YOUTH

The main goal of the project was to contribute to the professional development and economic independence of young people through a sustainable system for skill and competence building tailored to the needs of the labor market. The project achieved this goal through three components:

  1. Building practical skills for young people which will help them find a suitable job;

  2. Creating networking opportunities for young people to connect with employers and

  3. Providing support to young people entering the labor market and opportunities for their personal and professional development.

The project  offered several types of support for young people, tailored to their needs and interests, such as: connecting with employers and covering the fee for conducting internships; tutoring in project work; mentoring to facilitate entry into the labor market and start your own business. Also, three new regional offices opened, which in addition to the hub in Skopje will offer a wide range of opportunities for young people. These hubs opened in Stip, Gostivar and Tetovo.

Period of implementationJune 2021 – current
DonorBritish Embassy Skopje

“Support to Electoral Reforms in the Republic of North Macedonia”

“Support to Electoral Reforms in the Republic of North Macedonia” is a project of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) aimed at supporting the democratic and credible election processes that facilitate political participation and social integration by enabling voters to freely select their representatives and hold them accountable. The project activities are mostly directed to three different target groups, as follows: election administration, political parties and civil society organization. The project is implemented by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) in partnership with the National Youth Council of Macedonia (NYCM).

Period of implementation: August 2019 – ongoing
Donor: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)

Civic Engagement Project (CEP)

Civic Engagement Project (CEP) – was a five-year initiative for supporting the Macedonian civil society sector and youth organizations that include the citizens, the private sector and the governmental institutions, as well as the stakeholders on matters of public interest. As part of the project the NYCM organizes an annual LEAD (Leadership, Engagement, Action, Development) program which empowered motivated young people with skills to work within their communities. Moreover, LEAD  also enabled the youth to participate in the public life and the decision-making process on matters that affect their lives, communities and the Macedonian society overall. The Civil Engagement Project was implemented by the East West Management Institute (ЕWMI) in partnership with four civil society associations: Foundation for Internet and Society ‘Metamorphosis’, Association for Democratic Initiative (ADI), Foundation Open Society – Macedonia and the National Youth Council of Macedonia.

Period of implementation: September 2016 – January 2021
Donor: USAID

MladiHUB-Digital Youth

MladiHUB-Digital Youth was a project that offered young people access to digital and soft skills trainings in exchange for community service. Depending on their skills and interests, as well as the needs of the community in which they live, young people participated in various community-based initiatives and thus received trainings from certified providers and opportunities for networking and life experience. By the end of the project, the young people in the country will have a platform through which they will be able to acquire and improve their digital skills and respond to the digital transformation of the economy. This  improved their employment opportunities, promote innovation, contribute to the economic emancipation of young people and improve the economic situation in the country.

Period of implementation: May 2019 – March 2021
Donor: British Embassy Skopje

WeB4YES (Western Balkan Civil Society Organisations for Youth Employment Support)

WeB4YES (Western Balkan Civil Society Organisations for Youth Employment Support) represents a regional-scale initiative designed to deliver innovative cross-sectoral approaches and provide young unemployed citizens of the Western Balkan region opportunities for employability enhancement and employment. The Project is designed to address the existing challenges of insufficient cooperation among the civil society actors and public authorities in Western Balkans in the policy processes and decision-making toward the reform process regarding youth unemployment. The project, among other, aims to strengthen civil society stakeholders in order to make a significant contribution in solving many issues in the area of employment and entrepreneurship through their advocacy and oversight activities at national, regional and local level and in this way put more focus on the needs of young citizens in policy making. The Project coordinator is the Belgrade Open School and the partners on the project are: Beyond Barriers Association (Tirana, Albania), Association for Democratic Prosperity – ZID (Podgorica, Montenegro), Institute for Youth Development KULT (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina), NGO Lens (Pristina, Kosovo*), National Youth Council of Macedonia (Skopje, Macedonia) and Olof Palme International Center (Stockholm, Sweden).

Period of implementation: December 2017 – January 2021
Donor: European Commission

Student (re)form(ation)

The organization of students is a key topic for students at the beginning of the new academic year. With the adoption of the new Law on Higher Education, a reform was introduced in the organization of students. Students are not sufficiently informed about the new model of student organization, and universities are required to introduce the new model at the beginning of the new academic year. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor the overall process of establishing a new model of student organization, starting from informing the students, through the election process of student representatives to the establishment of faculty and university assemblies and bodies for the protection of students’ rights. This project will particularly address the issue of student organization and will follow the process of establishing a new model of student organization in three state universities – UGD, UKLO and the Tetovo University. The project will encourage active participation of students in these processes, through their increased information and motivation to engage in decision-making processes and advocacy of students before the university authorities. By developing a detailed plan for advocacy and coordination between project partners, a student organizing campaign will be launched to inform students about their rights and opportunities to participate in the work of the university, as well as the new model of student organization. Considering that NYCM member organizations are already working on advocacy for student organization of UKIM, with this project, the NYCM, together with the involved member organizations will work on informing and advocating for transparent student elections and student organization in the state universities in Shtip, Bitola and Tetovo. In addition, permanent consultations and coordination will be made with member organizations working in the same area at UKIM.

Month of implementation: October 2019 – March 2020
Donor: Foundation Open Society Macedonia

Inspiring Youth for Engagement

The main aim of this project is to introduce and promote the process of Structured Dialogue as an efficient tool for dialogue between young people and decision-making structures as well as to increase their interest to actively participate in society. In addition, the aim of this project was to establish a political culture of participation and consultation where young people will give their opinion on topics that affect them in a structured and organized way.

The main impact of this project was the fact that based on the position paper for establishment of a Co-management and Structured Dialogue Body that was created in Macedonia, the Government of the Republic of Macedonia decided to initiate a process of creation of a Co-management and Structured Dialogue Body. With the establishment of this body, Macedonia will become the first Western Balkan country to have a national working group for Structured Dialogue that will contribute to improving the quality of youth policy in Macedonia.

Period of implementation: February 2018 – May 2018
Donor: National Agency for European Educational Programmes and Mobility, Erasmus, KA 3

Mobilizing Social Action Through Grassroots Initiatives

The National Youth Council of Macedonia, as part of the “Move your finger” campaign supported civil society associations and informal groups of citizens in implementing initiatives on local level. The main goal of this campaign was to raise public awareness regarding the different opportunities for social changes which are in the range of each individual, as well as offer ideas and opportunities for contribution to specific activities within the community in which citizens can engage individually and collectively.

Period of implementation:  October 2016 – October 2017

Campaign #ИзбориСе

The goal of this cooperation was establishing and strengthening the dialogue between political parties, civil society organizations and local authorities in providing inclusive processes for the creation of youth policies. The Campaign #ИзбориСе envisaged several activities, which were aimed at the upcoming local elections in Macedonia that took place in 2017, as follows: regional consultative meetings with young people, public youth forums and public and media campaigns by involving youth activists at the local level in engaging the population locally.

Period of implementation: October 2016 – October 2017
Donor: National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI)

Empowering Youth for Employment

“Empowering Youth for Employment” is a project whose main goal was to increase employment opportunities for young people and to boost their integration in the labor market.

Period of implementation: June 2016 – April 2017
Donor: British Embassy Skopje

Monitoring the Action plan of the Youth Strategy of Centar Municipality 2015 – 2017

The project aimed at fostering transparency and accountability of the local institutions through monitoring the Action Plan on the Local Youth Strategy of Centar Municipality for the period between 2015 and 2017. The Monitoring of the Action Plan of the Youth Strategy of Centar Municipality provided a detailed insight during the implementation of the action plan which is important for further development of the activities that are in accordance with the Youth Strategy of Centar Municipality. The monitoring report and the recommendations were aimed at assisting in the creation of future action plans regarding the Youth Strategy of Centar Municipality and the development of the Strategy overall. This will provide a better path to achieving the vision and mission of the Strategy and at the same time it will improve the quality of life of young people in the Centar Municipality.

Period of implementation: June 2016 – December 2016
Donor: Foundation Open Society Macedonia

Youth organizing

The project’s main goal was to encourage youth engagement and capacity empowerment of youth organizations in acting as generators of active citizenship and youth activism.

Period of implementation: January 2014 – June 2014
Donor: USAID project for civil society, managed by FOSM

Review of youth policies in Macedonia

This project initiated a youth policy review in Macedonia with the aim to assess the current youth policy in the country and give guidelines and perspectives on strengthening the participation of youth organizations and young people in policy making. The project addressed the needs to increase the transparency and participation of young people in policy development. The research on youth policies by analyzing the survey and focus groups, and the national conference “Youth Policies and Youth Participation in Policy Making Processes” were conducted as part of this project. This conference enabled dialogue between the stakeholders on youth participation mechanisms and drafted recommendations for improving these processes. The publication “Review of Youth Policies in Macedonia” developed as a result of the project.

Period of implementation: June 2014 – November 2014
Donor: Friedrich Ebert Foundation and Konrad Adenauer Foundation

Youth civic education

The main goal of the project was to increase the capacities of young people for engagement in the public and political life in Macedonia through implementation of trainings for civic education.

Period of implementation: May 2014 – December 2014
Donor: British Embassy Skopje

Inspiring Youth Engagement

The project was aimed at promoting NYCM at the national level and conducting two surveys that examined the needs of the NYCM member organizations for enhancing their capacities, as well as assessing the needs of young people locally. The engagement of the NYCM through the project activities helped to raise awareness of its strategic goals among its member organizations, young people, institutions and the public in general, and contribute to NYCM gaining a wider recognition.

Period of implementation: February 2015 – April 2015
Donor: British Embassy Skopje

Youth engagement

The main goal of the project was to establish the National Youth Council of Macedonia as a representative body of young people responsible for creating and promoting youth policies. 11 trainings for strengthening the capacities of the NYCM member organizations and the youth organizations in Macedonia were conducted as part of the training, the Youth Inspiration Group MK was established and the mladi.mk mobile application was created.

Period of implementation: March 2015 – May 2016
Donor: British Embassy Skopje

Youth information

The main goal of the project was fostering inter-regional networking of youth organizations and improving, i.e. increasing of youth information nationwide. The project initiated lasting partnerships/networks between organizations of the same region, but more importantly from different regions in Macedonia. Through this project the web platform mladi.mk was created as youth information platform for direct cooperation between the youth and youth organizations as a generator of information for young people from different areas, as an aggregate and filter of the information disseminated to the youth. This project enabled the opening of the regional office in the Southeast Region of Macedonia.

Period of implementation: May 2015 – March 2016
Donor: USAID project for civil society, managed by FOSM

ACTIVE TODAY – Tools for implementation of youth policies

ACTIVE TODAY – Tolls for the implementation of youth policies is a project that aims to bring together seven countries coming from South East Europe (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Turkey, Bulgaria and Italy) so as to investigate the issues related to implementation of youth policy. The project also contained tools that youth councils and youth organizations can use within international youth work as well as inclusion of youth in decision making processes.

Period of implementation: December 2017 – March 2019
Donor: European Commission, Erasmus, K2

Youth Media Literacy Project

The Youth Media Literacy is a project conducted by NYCM as part of the Media Literacy Coalition in partnership with Radio MOF, and with the financial support of the School of Journalism and Public Relations. The project included media literacy trainings for a total of 60 young people aged 16-25, from three cities – Skopje, Veles and Tetovo. The project targeted young people interested in critical thinking, media literacy and journalism, whose awareness of media literacy is non-existent or low, but who never-the-less are interested in taking part by sharing their views and ideas, as well as reporting on events the ultimate goal of which is to provoke social change. During the two-day training, through theoretical and practical exercises, the participants received information on media literacy, propaganda and the distinction between ethical and unethical journalism, gained knowledge of journalistic techniques, and trained to develop concepts for audio and video content, research stories, podcasts, and radio shows. In addition to media literacy training for young people, there was public communication training provided for representatives of civil society organizations who wanted to improve their communication and public relations skills. The main purpose of this training was to topically direct public relations and ways in which civil society organization share information with their target groups leading to social change.

Period of implementation: June 2017 – January 2018
Donor: School of Journalism and Public Relations as part of the project “‘Media Literacy in an Information Dive: Media Literacy Coalition”

Study session: Removing barriers for youth civil society to organize itself and participate – The role of National Youth Councils in the youth policy development

The study session “Removing barriers for youth civil society to organize itself and participate – The role of National Youth Councils in the youth policy development” is organized with the aim to offer space for exchange of information, ideas and solutions for improving the position of youth organization in society, to identify existing challenges and to discuss various innovative tools for overcoming the existing challenges for young people to organize and participate. The study session gathered representatives from national youth councils, international youth organizations, national youth organization as well as representatives from the European Youth Forum and Council of Europe, thus presenting the local, national and European perspectives and context. The study session was organized in partnership with the National Youth Councils of Serbia, Romania, Ukraine, Poland and Hungary with the support of the European Youth Forum and it was funded by the Council of Europe.

Period of implementation: January 2018 – October 2018
Donor: European Commission

Why a Law on Youth in RM?

Why a law on Youth in RM? is a partner project of the National Youth Council of Macedonia and it`s member organizations: Scouts Association of Macedonia, Center for Intercultural Dialogue, Youth Educational Forum, Council for Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency – Kavadarci, Youth Cultural Center – Bitola, AKVA – Struga, Center for Development and Promotion of Public Life – Tetovo, Local Community Development Foundation – Shtip and the Regional Center for Social Development.
The project aims to inform and educate the youth about the need and benefit of the existence of the Law on Youth in the Republic of Macedonia. The achievement of the goal is envisaged by this project through holding 16 educational workshops for youth in the eight statistical regions of the country.

Period of implementation: May 2018 – April 2019
Donor: Foundation Open Society Macedonia

The Balkan Girl Power Project

The Balkan Girl Power is a project whose main goal is to provide training and advising in the process of producing photographs that express the views, perspectives and ideas of girls from the Western Balkans. Activities within the Balkan Girl Power Project will result in increased visibility of the Western Balkans girls’ perspectives on the future of their countries in the European Union, establishment of an informal network with more than 100 girls actively participating in the project, and education of girls about the creative skills and tools for critical thinking for their role in society and shaping the future of their country and the Western Balkans region.

Period of implementation: July 2018 – March 2019
Donor: Western Balkans Fund

FABUSS (FAmily BUsiness Successful Succession)

FABUSS (FAmily BUsiness Successful Succession) is a 24 months ERASMUS YOUTH project which aims at helping young persons related to family business become able and effective successors. Its target group consists of 18-35 years old persons who wish to take over their family business at some point in the future. These aspiring successors need skills and knowledge to effectively develop their business by applying new innovative strategies, including extension of their markets, through networking and cooperation with similar enterprises in other countries.

The project’s main expected results are:

  1. Identification and analysis of regional needs in the field of family business succession and youth entrepreneurship;

  2. Creation and implementation of an ICT tool (e-learning platform) to improve the level of entrepreneurial skills and the knowledge of young persons, required in the process of succession of family businesses;

  3. Support and facilitation of strategic planning of family enterprises, based on realistic processes to mitigate risks of failure in their succession and family business management.

Period of implementation: February 2017 – March 2019
Donor: European Commission