URL to article: https://www.iri.md/en/news/n-201.html


635 young people from 30 rural communities graduated the Youth Leadership Academy organized by the Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi)

635 young people from 30 rural communities graduated the Youth Leadership Academy organized by the Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi)

The Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi) announces the completion of the Youth Leadership Academy, organized in 30 rural communities that benefit from Youth Empowerment Program (YEP) services. The main purpose of the Academy was to mobilize groups of young people from rural areas of the Republic of Moldova and to train them in community civic activism resulting in equipping young people for a more active involvement in solving local problems.

The Academy training sessions started in June 2020 and finished in October 2020. In total, there were organized 240 training sessions for 635 young people representing 30 initiative groups from 30 rural communities.

15 partner NGOs from rural areas were involved and acted as local facilitators in the training and mobilization process. The local facilitators used as support material a Curriculum developed by iRi and GLCAP experts (USA) based on a material developed by Stanford University, USA.

In addition to the thematic sessions, there were organized practical exercises for strengthening young people’s knowledge in areas such as fundraising, community mobilization and community development tools. For those exercises, young participants received a mini-grant from iRi.

“At the Academy sessions for the first time I was able to express my opinion, to be listened, to talk to colleagues, to choose solutions.” – Valeria Goriu, Balanul Nou, Riscani district.

During the first sessions, young people learned how to communicate effectively in groups, take team decisions and speak in public with local stakeholders. The young people also practiced with other young people from the community in working together and building strong relationships with various stakeholders. The 30 initiative groups studied topics on community resources and identification of the problems. Within the practical exercise, the young people managed to raise funds for community activities from LPAs, local entrepreneurs and residents.

Within the summer sessions (application sessions) local facilitators taught young people about the process of developing a community vision for young people. The initiative group from 30 beneficiary communities surveyed 50 young people from each community in order to identify the problems and needs of young people in their community. In total, 1,500 young people were interviewed. Following an analysis of the questionnaires, the initiative groups invited LPA representatives, local stakeholders, young people and residents interested in contributing to the development of their own vision for the development of youth sector in their community.

“Such trainings are extremely welcome in rural areas, because young people need more attention, involvement and development.” – Tamara Pascaru, Alexandreni, Singerei district.

The Youth Leadership Academy offered young participants the opportunity to put into practice the skills developed within the trainings. Thus, until now, young people have organized a number of 75 community initiatives involving 820 young people in various activities of community interest such as tree planting, cleaning of community parks, landscaping, installation of benches for youth recreation areas, spaces for team games, fundraising for noble causes, community questioning, etc.

The results of the Pre and Post evaluation of the Academy showed that young people improved their knowledge and skills in community mobilization by 90%. Hence, once again, there is a need to create a friendly environment with opportunities for young people to develop and integrate them into society. Young people will have this opportunity by taking advantage of a new round of mini-grants offered by iRi under the Youth Empowerment Program (YEP).

“The Youth Leadership Academy united the initiative groups from the 30 beneficiary communities, taught them to work as a team and most importantly they created partnerships with LPA and local stakeholders. We are very happy of the young participants’ enthusiasm, the desire to promote civic activism and to solve the problems of young people in their communities”. – Lilia Sula, program coordinator, iRi.

“The Youth Leadership Academy had a crucial impact on developing the abilities of our young people. The academy in the way it was conceived and realized helped over 600 young people from the Republic of Moldova to mobilize and show an interest for their native community”. – Tatiana Costev-Cosuleanu, co-executive director, iRi.

The activity is part of “Youth Empowerment Program (YEP)”, implemented by the Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi), in partnership with Great Lakes Community Action Partnership (GLCAP), Ohio, USA with the financial support of U.S. Department of State.

For more photos from the event, please visit the iRi Facebook page:


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