CHOGM - we've all heard the acronym that has dominated the news for the past days as the heads of Commonwealth countries met to discuss issues on an intergovernmental level. But is this all just talk? Claudia Calleja spoke to Jean-Paul De Lucca, who chaired the Commonwealth Youth Forum (CYF) 5 - one of three pre-CHOGM meetings - who explains that even some delegates of the youth forum shared the same concern. He believes CYF5 was not just talk. The fact that people met to discuss issues that affect their countries is a giant step in the right direction. Now that CYF5 has presented its communiqué to the Commonwealth Secretariat and to governments - the ball is in their court.

Civil society depends on people being active and the tendency is that people who feel disillusioned by the way things are done or choose to live in their own little bubble.

The result, of course, is static.

That is why, Mr De Lucca, a former president of the National Students' Council, explains, the youth forum called on the heads of government to improve the structures of youth organisations and encourage the participation of young people in civil society.

He says there exists a frustrating generalisation that young people tend to be portrayed as apathetic individualists who simply talk about things that affect them.

As proven during CYF5, this umbrella perspective is absolutely unjustified as the young do feel for their country and some are filled with a fire to help and make things happen. Young people too have something to say and they deserve to be heard - no matter which country they live in.

"One of CYF's main recommendations was to encourage the involvement of young people through education and by making their involvement possible in practice," Mr De Lucca insists.

The 23-year-old headed the CYF planning team and led the meetings that culminated in the presentation of the communiqué drafted with the input of 35 participating countries representative of five different continents.

During the week of discussions that revolved around the theme of Networking For Development, CYF5 members held several meetings during which they exchanged their views on topics and issues that affect their countries. The communiqué was approved by unanimous consensus by over 100 delegates.

The topics were selected through consultation with regional representatives and the CYF5 planning team that has been working since March.

Mr De Lucca explains that, while discussing health and sexuality, it emerged that CYF5 delegates were worried that young people are disproportionately affected by sexual violence and sexually transmitted diseases, so they called on governments to improve legal frameworks to protect those affected by such issues.

They also spoke about the role of young people and education in the combating of sexually transmitted infections and the equally important role of supportive governments.

CYF5 also discussed issues surrounding good governance and active citizenship and touched upon topics such as the importance of education, the eradication of poverty and the safeguarding of human rights.

The forum targeted governance structures, pushing for more transparency and accountability, so as to ensure credibility of national governments while entrusting also the members of civil society to ensure this.

"One thing that Malta is particularly intent on putting forward when it comes to good governance is the issue of networking as a model of governance.

"Young people too fit into that network. The idea is that, when it comes to governance, you have so many different actors - political structures, Parliament, executives, trade unions etc. - and the ideal mode of governance is one that ensures a spirit of participatory democracy in an attempt to move away from hierarchical forms of governance," he says.

Networking also means forging ties, not only between young people and youth organisations themselves, but also networking young people within the wider network. To Mr De Lucca it means developing ties and sharing information and, he points out, it was this same exercise that led to the drafting of the CYF5 communiqué, which stressed on the importance of young people's role in civil society.

"If one of the aims of the Commonwealth is increasing development, participation and democracy, young people are crucial in that respect. True development and democratisation do not depend solely on young people, but they can't happen without them," he adds.

And young people have an active role to play in ensuring this.

But experience has taught Mr De Lucca there is an invisible barrier to this active stance and it starts with a 'P'. "Perhaps our notion of what the political is about is too restricted. It's not just about party politics. Many times the impression is that, if you're active you're on some sort of political path. That's where education for active citizenship comes in."

As outlined in the communiqué, there is need to develop an understanding of the importance of active citizenship, through effective education, as this enhances critical and creative thinking.

As a result of this active role, young people should be involved at all levels of decision-making, at local, national and international level.

As Mr De Lucca sees it, the shaping of policies carried out now also affect the future and, in that respect, young people have all the right to be part of that decision-making because they are a common denominator between present and future.

Moving on to sustainable livelihoods, enterprise and information and communication technology, the CYF5 delegates recognised the importance of enterprise development for youth of the Commonwealth. In doing so, they noted that little progress has been registered on the recommendations made in the previous CYF(4) communiqué presented two years ago in Abuja, Nigeria.

"We consider it fundamental that young people be included, actively, by governments in the formulation of policies dealing with enterprise and sustainable livelihood throughout the Commonwealth," the communiqué read.

The CYF5 communiqué was presented to foreign ministers and heads of government meeting in Malta and will be discussed at the Commonwealth Youth Ministers Meeting in March 2006. On their part, CYF delegates will be pushing for the implementation of the communiqué in their respective countries and at Commonwealth level.

"One of the things which young people in Malta feel strongly about is definitely youth participation and the need to involve young people at all levels through representative structures. There should be an open channel and dialogue with young people should be structured," Mr De Lucca says.

Given young people are an integral part of society, they have the right to be taken into consideration and to make their voice heard. Young people have something to say and the mechanisms of governance should ensure they are given the possibility to link up to a wider network.

Mr De Lucca stresses the fact that you cannot have the proper recognition of young people unless the structure they fulfill is formalised. And that is precisely why CYF5 called on the heads of state to institutionalise the young people's forum before the end of 2006 in order to facilitate sustainability and continuity.

"We asked heads of state to recognise the crucial role of young people in development and other issues. It's also a question of legitimacy as over 50 per cent of people represented by heads of state are young people," he points out.

CYF's vision is to work towards a Commonwealth:

¤ Where young people are involved in all decisions that affect them and play an equal role in society.

¤ Where young people have the opportunity to realise their potential and become full and active citizens across the world.

¤ Where the rights and responsibilities of future and present generations are realised and protected.

¤ Where countries compete fairly and respect diversity.