First Meeting of the International Association of Children’s Organizations Ends in Moscow
On June 3, the closing day of the First Meeting of the International Association of Children's Organizations, participants from over 40 countries met with Daniil Bisslinger, Director General of the World Youth Festival Directorate, and Grigory Gurov, Chairman of the Movement of the First. The Meeting, jointly coordinated by the World Youth Festival Directorate and the Movement of the First, took place from May 31 to June 3, 2024.
Daniil Bisslinger, Director General of the World Youth Festival Directorate, discussed post-festival work and expressed gratitude to the Meeting participants for their contribution to advancing international youth cooperation.
“During their time in Moscow, participants had a chance to explore Russia's capital, get to know one another, and develop joint ideas for advancing youth and children’s movements globally. The very idea of creating the International Association of Children's Organizations received support of Russian President Vladimir Putin. I am confident that we will achieve great success in collaboration with the Movement of the First, which has developed unique projects, ideas, and technologies for working with children and teenagers. As the World Youth Festival Directorate, we will provide full support for this process. One of the initiatives we are already implementing is a project to promote learning the Russian language as a language of international friendship for all participants within the ‘festival orbit’. We invite all our foreign friends to collaborate with us”, said Daniil Bisslinger.
According to him, all Meeting participants are now youth ambassadors of Russia, that will share knowledge about the country with their compatriots. During the meeting, Daniil Bisslinger also emphasized that one of the Directorate's priority areas will be exporting franchises of Russia's best youth policy practices. This will allow other countries to benefit from the accumulated experience to develop the potential of the younger generation.
Grigory Gurov, Chairman of the Movement of the First, highlighted that working with youth and children is a key priority for Russia.
“For us, the International Association of Children's Organizations is an opportunity for friendship and mutual understanding to build a prosperous future together. One of the principles of the Movement of the First is co-creation. Therefore, we aim to develop the Association together with participants and colleagues from the World Youth Festival Directorate. We plan to establish interethnic friendship clubs and school clubs under the auspices of the Association. We are ready to facilitate major delegation exchanges. It is very important to us that children and youth from other countries understand Russia, see how diverse, multinational, and multicultural it is, and that our children remain open-minded, knowledgeable, and understanding of the world, our neighbors, and our friends”, said Grigory Gurov.
On behalf of the international delegations, Ankhbayar Altansukh from Mongolia shared his impression of the First Meeting, noting that the International Association of Children's Organizations helped him make friends from different countries around the world. Other Meeting participants also expressed their desire to promote the Association’s activities in their respective countries.
“What I saw at the World Youth Festival in March this year and at the First Meeting of the International Association of Children's Organizations amazed me. I had never before witnessed youth work conducted at such a high level. We learned what Russia does for global peace, and it is truly significant. We want to conduct similar work in our own country”, said Jean Remy Jules Mbele, representative of Gabon.
Let us remind you that the International Association of Children's Organizations was established as part of the children’s track of the World Youth Festival and became its legacy. The First Meeting brought together teenagers from more than 40 countries, including France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Brazil, Hungary, Serbia, Moldova, Belarus, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Georgia, Algeria, Mexico, India, Morocco, Kuwait, Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, North Macedonia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Uganda, Gabon, Peru, and others.
Overview:
The World Youth Festival took place on March 1–7, 2024 in Sirius, according to the Decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the development of international youth cooperation. The WYF-2024 brought together 20,000 young leaders from 190 countries.
In the future, the World Youth Festival will become a platform for the development of a permanent international youth movement aimed at creating a just multipolar world. The WYF will be held in Russia on a regular basis – once in six years. Also, every six years 10,000 young people from all over the world will get together at the International Youth Festival, and international themed gatherings and events will be held under the auspices of the WYF.
The World Youth Festival is organized by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh). The WYF-2024 was operated by the World Youth Festival Directorate.