Courtyards for kids
"Courtyards for Kids" is what the young parliamentarians of the Liozno district intend to create. The first youth chamber in a rural district of the Vitebsk region has started operating under the Liozno District Council of Deputies, Irina Kudryavtseva, head of the youth affairs department of the district executive committee, told a BELTA correspondent.
The main goal of the young deputies is to establish a constructive dialogue between the district authorities and the youth. In turn, the district authorities are ready not only to engage in dialogue and help the children master the basics of public activities but also intend to identify those among them who have the makings of informal leaders, in order to train them as managers for both government bodies and the real sector of the economy.
The first district youth chamber includes 23 schoolchildren. All of them were elected by their peers on an alternative basis, prepared election programs, and spoke among their constituents. Just like in the adult Council of Deputies, the young elected officials have formed commissions. Their prerogative will be to discuss youth issues and submit them for consideration to the relevant structural divisions of the district executive committee and the standing commissions of the Liozno Council of Deputies.
The young parliamentarians have already identified the most important projects for 2013. Among the priorities is the self-funded improvement of one of the playgrounds. It is possible that this project, which they called "Courtyards for Kids," will be further developed. Plans also include organizing an exhibition of amateur young artists and reviving the KVN movement. Veterans of the war and lonely pensioners will be under the special attention of the young parliamentarians.
In the Vitebsk region, youth parliaments have currently been established in Novopolotsk and the Liozno district.