The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has conducted work for several years in the field of youth political participation. ODIHR’s mandate to conduct this work is based on an extensive set of OSCE commitments which highlight the pivotal role that young people can play in helping participating States fulfill their democracy and human rights obligations.

Within these mandates, ODIHR and the appointed gender equality organizational mentor and has supported the National Youth Council of Serbia (KOMS) over November and December 2021 with the aim of:

a) advancing gender mainstreaming skills and capacities of the KOMS Secretariat and KOMS member organizations,

b) hands-on learning, by making sure that the work on the new national youth policy is gender mainstreamed,

c) developing a youth budgeting tool for local self-government units, based on gender-responsive budgeting practices, and

d) identifying gender mainstreaming improvement needs when it comes to the internal structure and working practices.

The workshop will involve a desk review of the Council’s key documents, participatory exercises, one-on-one interviews, and focus groups with representatives of KOMS bodies, advisory bodies, and KOMS alumni.

As part of the mentoring process, a participatory gender audit report and an action document will be developed to guide the KOMS in its further activities to better represent and meet the needs of young women and men in all their diversity. It aims to further strengthen the capacity within the KOMS so that members of the KOMS staff and member organizations are equipped to implement gender-mainstreaming in the future, independent of external support.