UAE: Authorities draw out plan to raise parliamentary awareness, political participation among youth

UAE authorities are planning to develop and implement a series of initiatives and projects aimed at consolidating political awareness amongst youth. This will also entice them to get involved in parliamentary work, employing their proposals and jointly setting future plans with them.

The move follows the announcement of a partnership between the Ministry of State for Federal National Council Affairs (MFNCA) and the Federal Youth Authority (FYA), in line with the UAE Government’s directives and strategies to strengthen partnerships between federal government entities to ensure the best interest of the country and its citizens.

Shamma bint Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, said that the National Youth Agenda defined a range of development sectors in accordance with the UAE Centennial Plan 2071.

“In this context, I affirm our keenness to work under the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to invest in the energies of young people and direct them towards development, especially political participation through parliamentary work, which has a pioneering and rich experience since the establishment of the Union, and also involve active youth participation in decision-making and shouldering responsibility,” she said.

She added that the cooperation of the Federal Youth Authority with the efforts of the Ministry of State for Federal National Council Affairs will enhance participation of youth in parliamentary work, which contributes to achieving the goals set by the state, distinctively positioning the UAE nationally and internationally by implementing qualitative initiatives that enable young people to participate in parliamentary work over the next 50 years.

Tariq Hilal Lootah, Undersecretary of the MFNCA stressed the importance of this partnership in promoting the culture of political participation, shedding light on parliamentary life in the UAE, and raising parliamentary awareness among the youth, in addition to providing them with the tools they need to enhance their role in society, strengthen their ability to contribute to decision-making and nation-building, and enable them to play a part in advancing the UAE’s position towards more excellence and leadership, in the lead-up to the UAE Centennial.

The cooperation includes the development of specialized studies on youth interests and the professional and cultural needs in political participation.

• Abu Dhabi