The 2024 World Youth Development Forum, themed Together For A Better Future, opened in Beijing on August 12. More than 2,000 young representatives from over 130 countries and more than 20 international organizations attended both online and offline. Two foreign employees of CEEC were invited to participate in a range of activities including the opening ceremony, the Youth Pre-Meetings for the Summit of the Future, the Olympic Youth Gathering, and the Global Civilization Initiative International Youth Talk. Besides,they will also travel to Changsha to attend other activities such as thematic forums, special inspections, and cultural experiences.
At the opening ceremony, guests including Zhong Nanshan, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Ediola Pashollari, Secretary-General of the World Youth Congress, heroic astronaut Wang Yaping, and Deng Yawen,the champion of women’s BMX freestyle at the 2024 Paris Olympics, engaged in dialogues, sharing their youthful stories and envisioning a bright future. At the plenary session, more than ten youth ministers from various countries shared their views and experiences on promoting global development and empowering youth development.
During the youth speaking session, 9 typical projects leaders of Action Plan for Global Youth Development shared their practical achievements and future plans for promoting youth and global development. Youth representatives from 8 countries issued the International Youth Advocacy for the Summit of the Future, presenting youth recommendations for the upcoming United Nations Future Summit, voicing the youth’s commitment to jointly addressing global challenges and building a better future.
“Participating in this grand event and being surrounded by young people with good ideas has been a fantastic experience. As a foreign employee working on an overseas hydropower station project for CEEC, I am truly grateful for the valuable chance given by our company to be part of this forum. It has not only broadened my horizons but also strengthened my confidence in contributing to the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative and promoting green development,” expressed Li An (Chinese name), an Angolan employee of the company, after attending the opening ceremony, filled with excitement and joy.
The forum was jointly organized by the All-China Youth Federation, the United Nations System in China, and the Organizing Committee of the World Youth Development Forum. Hosting the World Youth Development Forum is an important initiative announced by President Xi Jinping at the High Level Dialogue on Global Development in 2022. It is a significant measure to gather youth power to implement the Global Development Initiative and the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, aiming to encourage the world’s youth to support global development and advocate for the collective promotion of youth development.
The CEEC League Committee actively responded to the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League’s B&R Development Programme, with three projects selected. The two foreign employees from the Angolan Keké Hydropower Station project were invited to attend as representatives of the project sites under the B&R Development Programme, showcasing the effectiveness of CEEC’s international youth cultural exchange and integration efforts, as well as the outstanding performance of its young employees.