10th International Youth day; an opportunity to draw attention to youth issues worldwide. The day has a special significance this year since the International Youth Year as declared by the United Nations General Assembly commences from today.In line with the theme for the International Youth Year, the theme for this year’s International Youth Day is ‘Dialogue and Mutual Understanding’. The choice of theme reflects the General Assembly’s appreciation of the value of dialogue among youth from different cultures as well as among different generations. This message was clearly apparent in the two day Youth Jatra organised by a group of Youth organizations like Association of Youth Organizations Nepal (AYON), YUWA and Youth Initiative on Wednesday at Alliance Francaise de Kathmandu. The event is supported by UNFPA, Save the Children, Maiti Nepal and CWIN.

“The event is a celebration of young people’s energy, imagination and initiatives,” says Rukh Gurung, President of YUWA. “We have tried to bring together young people with different skills and creativity to a common platform to showcase their talents.” The programme includes a photo exhibition titled ‘Youth Expressions’ where photographs taken by young people were presented. Though the photos cover a vast array of issues, the skills and ideas behind the photos were really praiseworthy. 20-25 students from different colleges participated in a poster presentation where they made posters addressing ‘Youth for tobacco free society’.A panel discussion on topics like same sex marriage and brain drain in Nepal engaged participants in a lively interaction with interesting views coming from young students. Arjun Puri, a tenth grader at Future Star High School said, “Brain drain is a big problem in Nepal.

In the interactive discussion, 132 youth participants were directly involved on the basis of inclusive principle and the discussion was highlighted on the local youth issues from different perspectives.

The event was concluded with youth organizations coming together for a solidarity rally starting from Shantibaatika and ending in GAA Hall, Thamel and, the fun will start there with B-boying, musical concert, games and food stalls functioning on full swing. Along with these, other events related to youths was also be launched alongside the musical concert to overlap with the International Youth Year.