OSCE Secretary General meets with Central Asian Youth Network alumni
Five participants from the Central Asian Youth Network (CAYN) met with OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger in Vienna on 4 October 2019. The discussion focused on security issues in Central Asia the OSCE’s work and its comprehensive approach to security.
The group attended a session of the OSCE Permanent Council and learned about the work of the various units of the OSCE Secretariat. They were also familiarized with the work of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the Parliament Assembly.
The participants attended some meetings jointly with a Youth Advisory Group from the OSCE Presence in Albania and had meetings with representatives of the OSCE Slovak Chairmanship, as well as a number of delegations of the OSCE participating States, including delegations of their respective countries.
The OSCE’s Focal Point on Youth and Security Anna-Katharina Deininger, as well as the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office Special Representative on Youth and Security Samuel Goda, discussed the Chairmanship’s priorities in promoting the role of youth in addressing the complex challenges to security in the OSCE area.
The group participated in a meeting of the OSCE Group of Friends of Youth and Security, where they spoke about their engagement in CAYN and shared their views on how the CAYN model can be applied to other regions.
Participants were selected on the basis of their outstanding contribution to the 2019 CAYN seminar held in June. This year’s seminar focused on the theme “Data. Dialogue. Digital Security” and involved some 35 students and CAYN alumni from the wider Central Asian region.
The visit was organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Nur-Sultan with financial and logistical support from the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek and the Conflict Prevention Centre.
The Central Asian Youth Network was launched in 2004 to enhance promising students' knowledge and understanding of contemporary security threats as well as the OSCE's role in addressing them.