• Increase the effectiveness, scale, and sustainability of youth programmes;

• strengthen the capacity of children and youth NGOs, local and national, dealing with youth and youth busines initiatives

• Generate social investments from the business sector, governments, international funding agencies, and NGOs;

• Enhance cooperation among the business, government, and civil society sectors to improve the conditions and prospects for young people.

The Challenge

More than a third of young people in the Balkans today are young people ages 24 and under the vast majority of whom are growing up amidst dramatic social economic and political changes. These changes include a volatile mix of religions' sluggish transitional economies' a high rate of ender- and unemployment among youth estimated at 35%. and political instability. An extremely high number of youth contemplate leaving their countries in search of better educational and job opportunities abroad.

An ongoing challenge is that most donors are leaving the Balkans too soon, while much work remains to be done in terms of econom ically and socially engaging the region's youth.

The Balkan Children and Youth Foundation (BCYF) was founded in 2000 to promote positive youth development throughout the region by building alliances at the local national regional and international levels. Acting as a catalyst, BCYF has pursued a comprehensive strategy to better meet the needs of the region's children and youth. Over the past five years, its core activities have been to enhance young people's opportunities in the areas of employment, technology, non-formal education, health promotion and prevention, and democracy building. The goal is to nurture a generation of young people in the Balkans who feel a vital part of their societies who are empowered to actively contribute, and who are hopeful about their futures and the futures of their communities and nations.

While BCYF seeks to address the urgent realities of a region recovering from decades of ethnic strife, economic isolation, and social instability, its focus has been to develop long-term , sustainable solutions. Toward that end BCYF has sought to strengthen youth-serving NGOs in the Balkans identify and support best practices convene individuals and organizations to develop a common vision among the region's youth and forge multi-sector partnerships to further these goals.

Since its founding, the Foundation has worked with more than 400 NGOS awarded more than 100 grants in 10 countries and territories and invested more than US$2.5 m illion in youth development and capacity building activities. Since 2000 more than 94,000 youth have been impacted by BCYF programs.

Economic Engagements

Social Engagement