EU4Youth: enhancing cooperation among national-level youth councils in Ukraine

On 9 February, the ‘EU4Youth: youth engagement and empowerment’ project supported Ukraine’s Ministry of Youth and Sports in conducting a facilitated strategic meeting of heads of national-level youth councils in Kyiv. 

The meeting brought together youth councils operating under the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and other institutions to discuss a shared vision, role, and cooperation framework for youth councils at the national level.

The purpose of the meeting was to develop a common understanding of the role of national youth councils in 2026, agree on a permanent communication and coordination format, and initiate the first cross-sectoral joint initiatives that could later be scaled within participants’ respective teams. 

The event was opened with welcoming remarks by Ulyana Tokarieva, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine. She spoke about the importance of youth councils as a partnership-based mechanism for meaningful youth participation in public policy-making. 

Participants were also addressed by Olena Kazmazovska, EU4Youth National Coordinator for Ukraine, who highlighted the project’s long-term support to the development of youth councils at the national level and encouraged participants to continue initiating joint actions.

The meeting was conducted in a facilitated format and included both plenary discussions and interactive working sessions. Participants jointly reflected on the role of youth councils within the system of public administration, worked on shaping a shared vision for national youth councils, and identified key thematic priorities that unite the majority of councils for 2026. Significant attention was given to discussing coordination mechanisms and regular communication formats between councils, as well as to addressing the challenge of moving from isolated initiatives toward joint solutions and coordinated action.

The event was organised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine with the support of the ‘EU4Youth: youth engagement and empowerment’ project, co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and implemented by GIZ and with the facilitation of ISAR Ednannia NGO.