Country Director Elena Tischenko's interview for youth multimedia campaign launch

Country Director Elena Tischenko’s interview at launch of Loy9 youth multimedia campaign

 11 January 2012

(Interviewed by a 17-year-old female presenter)

Transcript

Q:        Why do you think young people are so important in Cambodia?

A:        Young people all over the world, and especially in countries with young population like Cambodia, are important because of the vast contributions that they can make to the development of the country. They can help shape priorities and policies for Cambodia’s future and be part of their implementation.

Cambodia is a country with a very young population. In fact, Cambodia has the youngest population in South East Asia with around 32 percent of the population aged between 15 and 30 years.Active and meaningful participation of young people is essential to Cambodia’s economic and democratic development.

For young people to actively participate and contribute to the development of Cambodia, they need knowledge and skills. They also need to know how best to apply these skills and for what purpose. Such knowledge comes from young people understanding of how they can be a positive force to help their country to prosper and to embrace opportunities for participation and civic engagement.

Q:        How is the UNDP working with youth in Cambodia?

A:            Working with youth is among key priorities for UNDP in Cambodia in the years to come. This is simply because young people have huge potential, great energy and can make very valuable contributions to Cambodia’s future. Through our programmes on youth-related issues we hope to help young people to become more competent, empowered and inspired participants in Cambodia’s development. For example, better access to information and use of media can help young people to get more involved in the lives of their communities or be better equipped for entering the labor market and finding jobs.   

The whole United Nations system in Cambodia recognizes the importance of youth to Cambodia’s future and assists in a number of ways, from helping to improve school retention to participation in environment preservation to acquiring marketable skills through vocational training.

 Q:       How is UNDP supporting the Loy9 Campaign?

A:         Last year in July, the United Nations Development Programme partnered with the BBC Media Action to produce a study on youth civic participation and the media in Cambodia. The study involved face to face interviews with 2000 youth aged 15-24 discussing civic participation and awareness about the role of the youth in economic and democratic development.

The study showed that the media provides an important platform for young people to interact with wider society. Media is also one of the best channels to deliver civic education and to provide a space for the voices and views of young people to be shared.

We are very pleased to be partnering with BBC Media Action in the Loy9 campaign and hope that it will help inspire young Cambodians to be more active in civic life – by engaging with local government authorities, volunteering to help other vulnerable people in their communities and other examples of active and positive contributions to the society. UNDP is supporting the Loy9 Campaign by providing funding and coordinating the campaign with government and non-governmental organizations. The UNDP also helps mobilize technical advice to the media producers about the content of the campaign and community outreach activities.  

Q:        What impact do you envisage the Loy9 Campaign will have on Cambodian youth?

A:         We want to see young people better equipped to help their community and to share their views. The Loy9 Campaign is about providing young people with information and examples from their peers who already found the ways to make positive contributions, be it with their community, their school, their neighborhood or the local councils decision-making process. The Loy9 campaign will share concrete stories about young people making a difference in their communities. We hope that seeing these positive examples and getting to know young role models from all walks of life will motivate other young people to realize their own potential to a fuller extent.

We hope that the campaign will also help build greater awareness among young people about institutions, like the parliament and commune councils, and their roles in Cambodia’s democratic development, and how youth can relate to these institutions. As the campaign gets on the road we will observe the progress and help share information about its results with government and non-government partners working with youth. 

Q:        If a 15-year-old Cambodian girl is at home watching this right now – what would you say to her, to encourage her to be involved in the Loy9 campaign?

A:         I would say to her:

You are young and you have great potential. Your voice and views matter. With your energy and skills you can make a real difference for your community and for Cambodia’s development when joined by many other competent and inspired young people. 

Watch and listen to the Loy9 programmes on TV, radio and online

Subscribe to the Loy9 Facebook page.

But most importantly … GET INVOLVED!