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The first National Youth Summit NYSP18 was organized in Lahore, Pakistan by Center for sustainability research and practice (CSRP) in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Government of Punjab, FM91, Punjab Commission on the status of Women and Youth Advocacy Network (YAN). The event brought together youth from all parts of Pakistan to provide them a platform to inform and influence policymakers on issues impacting their lives. It was hosted by University of Lahore (UOL) on 12 and 13 of February 2018.The summit will be an annual gathering of more than150 youth activists selection with equal representation including the ethnic minorities.
The 1st National Youth Summit is the first in the series organized by the Center for Sustainability Research and Practice (CSRP), University of Lahore with the aim of bringing together policymakers, youth and relevant stakeholders to encourage inclusive, evidence-based decision making and policy process in Pakistan, with a special focus on youth policy development before the next elections.
Center for Sustainability Research and Practice is a youth-led Independent think tank working towards sustainable development and global goals. CSRP was founded in 2012 by Muhammad Naseem Khan Achakzai, an activist from the mountains of Balochistan Province in Pakistan with years of experience in the development sector. He was the Director of the 2nd South Asian Youth Conference Pakistan. Naseem has also been the Chairperson of International Youth Council Pakistan.
The National Youth Summit is divided into four main pillars, tackling topics of interest to the youth of Pakistan, creating a platform to express views, present ideas, and network to share their experiences. The main objective is to stimulate the role of youth in decision and policy-making in the mainstream politics.
DAY 1 – Opening session:
The two-day national summit started off with a warm welcome note by the Director CSRP Naseem Achakzai. Provincial Minister for Sports & Youth Affairs Jahangir Khanzada addressed the youth and encouraged them to play their role in the decision making of Pakistan. He listed the Punjab Government led programs for youth, including Educational endowment fund, IT training, E-Rozgar schemes, Laptop distribution etc. The government of Punjab launched its first ever Youth policy in 2012 and the Minister emphasized that more than 60% of Pakistani population is young (ages: 15-29yrs).
Youth needs to be included and is a stakeholder in the country’s progress and development. He also discussed that our future has been significantly affected by the war on terrorism and the country has lost more than seventy thousand lives to the menace of terrorism. Interestingly, he appreciated the hard questions and suggestions he was given by the youth and said his doors are always open for the youth. The message meant that politicians are and should be accessible to the public.
General Shafaat Shah took to the stage to discuss the Re-branding of Pakistan; he termed it collective responsibility of Pakistanis. He praised the organizers for arranging such a diverse and inclusive summit and galvanized the youth to take action and accepted that their elder generations had made mistakes but it’s time for the youth to rebrand the country. He emphasized that fifty percent of women need to be involved in the nation building for us to prosper. He regretted the negative role of media, and weak foreign policy, low education budget, terrorism as the causes of a negative image of the country.
Anchor and Country head of a Bank Mansoor Azam Qazi was eloquent in advising the youth to read “Paigham-e-Pakistan: The Narrative of Pakistan”; a national narrative- unanimous FATWA and Joint Declaration to counter violence, extremism, and terrorism. It was launched and promulgated by more than 1800 Islamic scholars of all schools of thought. Mr. Mansoor went on to inspire skepticism and evidence-based decision making in the youth.
The very first plenary titled as ‘Challenges faced by Youth: Means to overcome towards building a better future’ was moderated by Director CSRP with Chairperson of Punjab Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) Fouzia Viqar, Director Youth Advocacy Network (YAN) Mr. Fasaahat and PTV Anchor Mansoor Qazi as the panelists. They discussed the role of youth, women in policies and achieving Sustainable development goals. In order to bring a change, the youth needs to be informed and take the right steps. According to Chairperson PCSW, National Youth Policy of Punjab became a national framework for youth empowerment through many job opportunities including online Job banks, the quota for youth, Venture Investment, Endowment Fund, Internship program, Volunteerism, Youth Caucus in assembly.
The last plenary of the day one was ‘Means to enhance women’s political, social and economic participation’ and the panelists included Executive Director Digital Rights Foundation Nighat Dad, Professor Lahore University of Management Sciences Dr. Ghazal Mir Zulfiqar, Member Punjab Assembly Mary Gill, Advocate Dr. Raheem Awan and Fouzia Viqar as the moderator. The panel debated on women rights and reforms in laws regarding women issues of harassment, inheritance and guardianship issues, moderate court system.
Fair representation act and Women Protection Ordinance were discussed. Dr. Asma Jahangir was remembered as a torchbearer of human rights and democracy. The need for gender-neutral policies and broader social transformation emerged as the crux of the discourse. Indeed, the speakers agreed to the point that women empowerment, safety, and equal opportunities lie at the heart of sustainable development.
A dinner was arranged for delegates by Sports and Youth Minister Jahangir Khanzada at the Swimming Pool Complex. Day one ended with patriotic songs and entertainment.
DAY 2:
The second day of the summit started with a fishbowl conversation on ‘Capitalizing the potential of youth for development’. The delegates brought diverse perspectives to the table and had thought-provoking insights into youth challenges and solutions.
The first panel discussed ‘let’s agree to disagree: Ethics of Disagreement, promoting inclusion and countering extremism in Youth’ and ‘Dialogue among Generations’. The speakers Member National Assembly MNA Romina Khursheed Alam, Founder of Lahore Education & Research Network (LEARN) Nida Mahmood, MNA Shehryar Afridi took turns respectively. Romina highlighted the need to address the communication gap between youth and politicians. While advising the youth to add value, foster understanding and seek knowledge, the Educationist Nida quoted Stephen Covey, “Listen to understand, not to reply”.
Shaheryar Afridi became the most prominent speaker of the session where his speech got a standing ovation from the youth. He emphasized on youth’s responsibilities as Pakistani and global citizens and discussed a wide range of issues; extremism, social injustice, fighting agenda of polarization, lack of integrity and morality in society and the importance of unity. Everything revolves around what you think, consume and contribute, he said. He took an oath from the youth to rise and shine as humans, the words ‘Go back to your roots’ and oration brought goosebumps to the crowd.
‘Role of Women and youth in achieving SDGs’ session was conducted by panelists Environmental journalist Abu Bakar, RJ Sofia Anjum, Rabia Akhtar, Asim Nawaz Abbasi. Panel shed light on the implementation of SDG’s in Pakistan with a special emphasis on women inclusion. In the last session of ‘Rebranding Pakistan and the Role of Media’, RJ Sophia presented a point to ponder, to re-brand you first in order to rebrand the country and reclaim its ownership. Motivational session by Zeydan Khan charged the youth to believe in their dreams and follow their hearts instead of becoming a herd.
The summit encouraged youth to participate in the decision-making of the country, particularly vote and spread awareness in 2018 elections to change the course of history. The youth needs to realize their importance and the significance of their vote. As in the past, voter turnout used to be low due to various factors including the fact the voters didn’t value the power of their vote; at times women voters were left out of the voting process. The summit was exemplary in its equal representation. Youth from all provinces, ethnicities, and religions came forward to show solidarity with the vision of youth being integral to national development.
Closing Ceremony:
The Closing Ceremony was held at the University of Lahore where all the cultures of Pakistan were represented during entertainment shows and a message of harmony and peace was sent to the nation. Chairman Board of Governors UOL Asad Rauf gave the closing remarks of keeping up with national and international summits. Lastly, certificates were distributed to the delegates and the night ended with beautiful folk music and cultural dances from all parts of Pakistan.
The summit recognized the efforts of youth, especially women in the country and shattered many stereotypes. It brought together youth from different ethnicities, sects, religions, and provinces and provided them a platform to interact and voice their ideas, collaborate on finding solutions to the wicked problems and rebrand Pakistan as global citizens.
