For three consecutive years the Association for Media and Civil Society Development has been dedicated to empowering young people in their participation in local communities. The #odgovornost (eng. accountability) program began in January 2023, with the main goal of educating, encouraging and motivating young people across Bosnia and Herzegovina to take an active role in decision-making processes and addressing challenges in their local communities.
Our one year-long political literacy program brought together 25 participants from different local communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Mandatory components of the #odgovornost program for participants included 2 three-day educational workshops, non-violent activist actions in local communities, advocating initiatives, and the final conference.
During the first educational workshop held in February 2023, 25 young individuals had the opportunity to learn about how society is built through activism and explore forms of activism that encourage intensive participation in local communities. The lecturers were particularly important for participants, because they motivated them with their knowledge and experience, and inspired them to create local civic initiatives upon their return to their communities. After the first workshop, participants had the chance to engage in activist actions in local communities, gathering support for the issue they identified earlier.
From March to June, young people actively operated at the local level, bringing significant experiences to the second workshop in June. During the second workshop, they received additional information about the decision making processes from the lowest to the highest levels of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the process of writing a civic initiative and submitting it to the relevant authorities.
After 2 workshops, activist actions, and the advocacy process, participants submitted their civic initiatives to the relevant authorities, initiating processes that are crucial for the development of their local communities.
The #odgovornost program was concluded with a final conference held in October 2023, which was attended not only by program participants but also by guests closely collaborating with the Association. During the October 13th to 15th conference, young people demonstrated that activism and citizen participation in decision-making processes are of big importance for the continued progress of society in our country.
You can follow the next steps of the #odgovornost program and our campaign on political literacy on our Facebook page #odgovornost and Instagram page “@odgovornostbih“.
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This activity is implemented as part of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Resilience Initiative project, which is implemented by the International Organization for Migration and financed by the Austrian Development Cooperation.