• CYPPacific:
• What we do

What we do

Do We Have a Mission?

Yes, sure do.

Our mission during 2003 - 2006 is to provide young citizens of the Commonwealth (15 - 29 years) with the critical knowledge, skills and opportunities to participate effectively in the development and governance of their communities and societies.

What's the Approach?

We do things with, not for, young people. That's the only way it will really work.

In carrying out our activities we use the expertise of lots of smart people - young and young at heart - from throughout the Pacific region and beyond.

What Do We Do?

We are focusing on four main areas (we call them strategic programs):

1. Youth Enterprise Development

We are trying to help young people create employment options. In the South Pacific - you probably know this - the reality is that few jobs for young people exist and are unlikely to exist without greater efforts. So we conduct regular intensive training programs that focus on assisting young people (young entrepreneurs - sounds good eh?) to develop the skills to establish or improve small businesses that are viable in their communities. We do this with our friends in national Youth Ministries together with United National Development Program (UNDP), the Adidem Group (they own the The Body Shop, and Accessorize), and First Australians Business.

2. Youth Networks and Governance

Our work in this area aims to help young people influence governance (ie how society operates) at local, national and international levels. We conduct training in areas such as national youth policy development, strategic planning, and leadership skills. We help Pacific national youth reps attend regional and international conferences, and we offer internship (work experience) programs within CYP and Government Youth Ministries. We talk a lot with the Regional Youth Caucus (the national youth rep from each country) on how to make our activities really succeed (see "Youth Representatives").

3. Youth Participation

Basically you can choose to get involved in society, or choose not to. It's better to get involved - then you can't blame anyone but yourself if things don't work out. We see participation as an essential vehicle for development - not just as an individual but also within the wider spheres of consensus building, tolerance and active citizenship that underpin democracy. We are all in it together. Young people need to be at the centre of national youth policy development plans and processes. Our activities include running competitions that recognize and reward innovative youth-led projects; conducting joint HIV/AIDS Awareness programs in partnership with organizations such as UNICEF; and putting Pacific youth on Commonwealth Electoral Observer Missions (it's amazing what young people can see -and older people don't - during an election).

4. Youth Work Education and Training

Did you know that in most countries of the world the profession of Youth Work does not exist? We are trying to change that. Through this program we are developing and promoting the profession of youth work, guided by a code of practice and supported by regulatory mechanisms. We implement our university accredited CYP Diploma in Youth in Development through the University of the South Pacific, RMIT University (Australia) and Solomon Islands College of Higher Education. We also have a CYP Certificate in Youth Work that is delivered by Youth Ministries, NGO agencies and Youth Councils. Our work in education and training recognizes that young people, youth leaders and youth workers all bring experiences and perspectives to the learning environment - formal and informal - that contributes to the building of a professional youth service. We all need that.