Clifton Grima urges European ministers to put youth at the heart of decisions

Youth Minister Clifton Grima has called on his European counterparts within the Council of Europe to ensure that young people are placed at the centre of decision-making processes.

Grima made this appeal at the opening session of the 10th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth held on Thursday at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta. 

Several speakers noted that it had been thirteen years since the last such conference focused on youth issues.

The goal of the conference is for government ministers to agree on a final declaration titled “Young People for Democracy: Youth Perspectives in Action.”

This gathering follows the European Youth Work Convention, which also took place in Malta last May and brought together over 500 representatives from 41 countries. The conclusions reached there are expected to be endorsed at this week’s conference.

Grima, who chaired the event, began by describing the conference as  a “significant milestone in Europe’s commitment to young people,” aiming to build a “more inclusive, forward-looking Europe.”

“We must also keep in view the ongoing violence, armed conflicts, and humanitarian crises across the world, which continue to cast a long, dark shadow,” Grima said, while also condemning “Russia’s war of aggression” against Ukraine, a Council of Europe member state.

The minister said the meeting places young people at its centre, and that the declaration to be adopted will “empower and support youth while shaping a better future".

“We need to listen to the views of young people, as their voices are central to our success,” he added.

European Commissioner for Youth Glenn Micallef warned warned that young people’s freedom of expression is increasingly under threat, especially as misinformation spreads.

“As misinformation spreads, too many young people feel their voices don’t matter,” he said. To counter this, Micallef urged that young people must have “a seat at the table, from shaping the agenda to decision-making.”

He called on ministers to address the rising cost of living and ongoing conflicts that are affecting young people’s mental health and sense of security.

Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset reflected on how much the landscape has changed since the last conference thirteen years ago.

“Today, young people get their news from social media and have grown up surrounded by cyberbullying and misinformation,” he said. “AI shows a lot of promise, but it also blurs the lines between truth and lies, fact and fiction,” he said.

He also stressed the importance of setting aside prejudices and listening directly to the experiences of young people.

Theodorus Rousopoulos, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, said too many declarations end up forgotten.

He urged ministers to ensure that this one is “not ink on paper, but a living commitment that will outlive us all.”

Citing the draft declaration's line that “Europe’s pursuit of peace is vital,” he remarked: “Really? Eighty years after the end of the Second World War, how disappointing it is that we must still discuss peace as something to be pursued.”