South Asian Youth Summit, 2017 kicks off in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Without love, peace and justice, efforts of today’s youth would not bear fruits, iconic human rights activist, Irom Sharmila said during the first ever South Asian Youth Summit, 2017 that kicked off here on Sunday on the lines of a global theme titled “Creating a Sustainable Future: Empowering Youth with Sustainable Opportunities”.

Speaking to media after the session of the summit, Sharma said, “I want to connect the hearts of these enthusiastic committed youths who have assembled from across south Asian countries with love and repeal their draconian qualities."

As many as 272 youth leaders, activists and thinkers from 61 countries including SAARC member states graced the inaugural session of the three-day long summit.

Organised by International Youth Committee (IYC), the summit provides a common platform to bring youth together to brainstorm policies aimed at empowering youth, enhance inclusive youth participation in implementation of sustainable development goals.

Speaking to media Jayant Patra, President of IYC, said the success of the summit depends upon how effective it can be in bringing youth together to discuss and find out issues and challenges to address.

The programme has been divided into two parts. On Sunday youth leaders from different participating countries exchanged ideas and policies implemented in their respective countries. During the second day, discussions on social forum will be held whereby different stakeholders including representatives of the delegates will be saying what sort of role that youth should play so that sustainable development can be made, Patra said.

On the concluding day, the delegates will visit various tourist places in Odisha and will also make a tour to city based Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS).