Youth Innovations: New Prospects of the Dialogue of the Youth of the Central Asian Countries Were Discussed at the UN Headquarters

On April 16, 2025, the second meeting of the “Youth Dialogue of the Central Asian Countries” organized within the framework of the Youth Forum of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The event chaired by Turkmenistan brought together youth representatives, representatives and heads of the authorized executive bodies on youth issues, diplomatic missions and international organizations, emphasizing the urgency and significance of the initiative of Turkmenistan to integrate and consolidate youth processes in the region and beyond.

A Hero of Turkmenistan, Permanent Representative of Turkmenistan to the UN Aksoltan Atayevadelivered a welcoming speech of the participant of the second meeting of the Dialogue . In her address, a diplomat Atayeva emphasized the importance of the youth diplomacy as a powerful tool for strengthening peace, mutual understanding and trust in the region and beyond, noting the role of Turkmenistan in promoting the most important UN resolutions on youth, peace and security issues.

Noting a special contribution of the neutral status Turkmenistan to the integration of the regional and international youth initiatives, Aksoltan Ataeva called on the youth of Central Asia to actively participate in the global processes, using such unique platforms created with the support of Turkmenistan as the Dialogue of the Youth of the Central Asian Countries.

The participants were then shown a video about the origin and development of the Central Asian Youth Dialogue initiative, first proposed by Turkmenistan in Arkadag city in October, 2023. The video also showed the achievements of Turkmenistan in the youth policy, including the creation of the national platforms to support youth initiatives, a promotion of intergenerational dialogue, and implementation of the international resolutions aimed at the strengthening of culture of peace and trust. The video material stressed the active role of the country in developing a sustainable regional youth agenda focused on cooperation, mutual understanding, and development.

A deputy minister of Education of Turkmenistan Azat Atayev presented a strategic model for the development of the youth of the country. He stressed the fact that that under the leadership of the Esteemed President Serdar Berdimuhamedov , a motto “Youth is the support of the Motherland” had become not only a symbol of the state policy, but also a basis for developing an inclusive model that took into account the individual interests, skills and aspirations of the young people.

It was noted that such adopted legislative and programme documents as a new version of the Law “On State Youth Policy”, the State Programme on Youth Policy for 2021-2025 and the Strategy for the International Cooperation of the Youth of Turkmenistan for 2023-2030, ensure the implementation of the youth policy aimed at the comprehensive development of the youth and their active participation in the social life of the country.

A particular attention was paid to the demographic dividend of Central Asia, where over a half of the population was under 30 years old. In this regard, it was emphasized that under the leadership of the Esteemed President of Turkmenistan, the country was implementing functional mechanisms directing the energy and knowledge of the young people to the achievement of the strategic goals, including the development of the digital economy and innovative industries.

This in turn, represents a unique window of opportunities for the accelerated economic growth and innovative development. In this regard, a number of the concrete mechanisms were proposed within the framework of the Dialogue of the Youth of the Central Asian Countries to consolidate the potential of the countries of the region. These initiatives are aimed at the institutionalization of the youth policy and ensuring of a sustainable development of the region through the active involvement of the younger generation.

The representatives of the international structures and UN agencies, such as UNICEF, UNFPA and the International Organization for Migration, confirmed their keen interest and urgency of the Central Asian Youth Dialogue. They expressed their readiness to support and expand this cooperation, noting its importance for the regional and global sustainable development.

Deputy Hakim of Tashkent for Youth Policy, Social Development and Spiritual and Educational Work Durdona Rakhimova noted the importance of institutionalizing youth interaction and emphasized the need to create sustainable mechanisms for implementing joint initiatives. Representatives of youth departments of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan expressed support for the proposed initiatives, emphasizing the importance of interstate cooperation for the development of youth policy.

The Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, Dr. Felipe Paullier stressed the importance of the youth participation in decision-making processes and noted the contribution of the Central Asian Dialogue to the promotion of the “Youth, Peace and Security” agenda. Miroslav Janča , UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, noted that the initiative contributed to strengthening trust and mutual understanding in the region.

Representatives of France, the Philippines, Liberia, Jordan and other countries emphasized the importance of exchanging experience in the field of youth policy and expressed their readiness to cooperate with the Central Asian region. The representative of the Russian Federation noted the importance of the initiative for strengthening regional stability and expressed support for the further development of the Dialogue.

The representatives of the youth of Turkmenistan made a presentation in which they reflected the key values and priorities of the country in the sphere of the youth policy, peace and sustainable development. Their speeches stressed the aspiration of the youth of Turkmenistan for active participation in the international initiatives aimed at strengthening peace and trust.

During the event, a video message from the young ambassadors of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of Turkmenistan, in which they expressed their commitment to the promotion of the SDGs and active participation in the implementation of relevant programmes was shown.

Basing on the proposals and initiatives voiced by the youth representatives, the meeting participants adopted the Appeal of the Second Meeting of the Dialogue of the Youth of the Central Asian Countries and approved the Regulations on holding the Dialogue on a rotational basis. A next meeting is planned to be held in the Republic of Kazakhstan, which testifies to the continuation and strengthening of the regional cooperation in the sphere of the youth policy.

A broad participation of the high-ranking representatives of the international organizations and UN member- states testifies to the recognition of the efforts of Turkmenistan in promoting the values of peace, security and youth policy on the international arena. The high-ranking representatives of the international organizations and UN member- states expressed their gratitude to Turkmenistan for its active role in promoting the values of peace, security and youth policy on the international arena.

Thus, the second meeting of the Central Asian Youth Dialogue on the UN platform confirmed the strategic importance of the youth diplomacy and the role of Turkmenistan as a neutral state actively promoting the values of peace and mutual understanding through the involvement of youth.

Ministry of Education of Turkmenistan