Ó An Roinn Forbartha Tuaithe agus Pobail
Foilsithe
An t-eolas is déanaí
Teanga: Níl leagan Gaeilge den mhír seo ar fáil.
Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys, and Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, have today welcomed the second sitting of the national Rural Youth Assembly.
The Assembly gathered approximately 50 young people, aged between 12-24 years, at Collins Barracks in Dublin to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing young people growing up in rural Ireland.
The initiative is an opportunity for Government to hear the concerns and aspirations of young people from across rural Ireland and ensure their voices are heard as a key part of the rural development policy process.
The establishment of the Assembly in 2021 delivered on a commitment in Our Rural Future, the government’s rural strategy.
The idea to host an annual event was proposed by youth groups themselves during the policy consultation process, and this Rural Youth Assembly has now been incorporated into a wider programme of National Youth Assembly events hosted by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.
Minister Humphreys said:
“It was a privilege for me to welcome the young people who attended today’s Assembly and to thank them wholeheartedly for their participation in what was a really informative discussion. The hugely diverse group in attendance reflected the wide variety of issues of importance to young people of all ages and from all parts of the country. It is vitally important that our young people have a voice in decisions which affect them in order that those decisions help support rural areas which offer young people the potential to plan for a future that allows them remain in, or return to, their local communities to live, work and raise their families.”
Minister O’Gorman said:
“Through the National Rural Youth Assembly, we can ensure that young voices remain at the heart of rural development. This is an important step forward for the government, not just in asking for your views when we are developing policy but also when we are deciding on the priorities and work programmes that come out of those policies. I look forward to meeting with the Assembly to hear about what they want to see from their government."
Minister Humphreys also acknowledged the contributions of Foróige and Comhairle na nÓg to the Rural Youth Assembly, adding:
“Youth organisations like Foróige and Comhairle na nÓg work tirelessly on behalf of young people in our rural communities and I would like to thank them for their work on this Rural Youth Assembly. I would also like to thank Minister O’Gorman and his department for taking part and for their assistance in making today’s event a success.”
Our Rural Future is the whole-of-government policy for rural Ireland for the period 2021-2025. It represents a new milestone in the approach to rural development policy for Ireland and adopts a more strategic, ambitious and holistic approach to investing in and maximising opportunities for rural areas.
The second Rural Youth Assembly saw 50 young people aged 12-24 growing up in rural communities attend the event in the National Museum at Collins’ Barracks. It follows on the success of the inaugural event, held online in November 2021.
The Assembly is one of the measures for delivery in Our Rural Future, and was proposed by young people during the consultation process in the development of the policy.
Foróige is the leading youth organisation in Ireland and has been working with young people since 1952. Its purpose is to work for good in communities across Ireland by enabling young people to involve themselves consciously and actively in their development and in the development of society.
It engages with 5,500 volunteers, who work with over 50,000 young people aged 10-18 each year through volunteer-led Clubs and staff-led Youth Projects. Foróige currently operates in 26 counties in Ireland, with more than 600 Foróige Clubs, 150 Youth Projects, the Big Brother Big Sister mentoring programme, the Foróige Youth Entrepreneurship programme, Youth Citizenship and Youth Leadership programmes.
Comhairle na nÓg are child and youth councils in the 31 local authorities of the country, which give children and young people the opportunity to be involved in the development of local services and policies.
Comhairle na nÓg are for young people under the age of 18, who have no other voting mechanism to have their voice heard. They are designed to enable young people to have a voice on the services, policies and issues that affect them in their local area.
The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) Comhairle na nÓg Development Fund provides money to local authorities to run effective Comhairle na nÓg. The department also funds the services of 3 regional Participation Officers who provide advice, resources and training to all 31 Comhairle na nÓg Coordinators.