On October 19th and 20th, Eurodiaconia ran a seminar on Non-Formal Education in Armenia, hosted by the Armenia Roundtable Foundation.

Unemployment rates amongst young people across Europe and the European Union are improving, but they are still tense and for many Eurodiaconia members a central concern of their work. Several actions are aimed at improving employability of young people and to prevent precarious educational/unemployment gaps. With this in mind, Eurodiaconia organized a Non-Formal-Education Seminar in Armenia, hosted by its member the Armenia Roundtable Foundation.

The event brought together members of the Eurodiaconia network, as well as external speakers active in the field of youth work in the region and in Europe.

The event focused on the role of non-formal education and volunteering as a lever for youth unemployment. The participants had the opportunity to visit two social centers run within the Armenia Roundtable Foundation network, in Gyumri in the northern region of Shirak, and also in the village of Gai close to Yerevan. The group were presented the social educational centers and learnt about the challenges in reaching service users and enhancing the chances for young people in the region. During the two-day seminar, Eurodiaconia members had the opportunity to present what is being done in their organisations in terms of youth and to exchange with other members to discuss different approaches and to share best practices.

Bringing diaconal actors working on similar topics from across Europe is a key part of our work at Eurodiaconia, and broadening the shared belief that non-formal education is a more and more decisive factor for young people’s place in society was a rewarding result for our recent event. We hope that this momentum and commitment shown from our hosts in Armenia and our enthusiastic participants can drive our future work on the topic of youth inclusion and combating unemployment among young people.

More detailed information on the event and the topics covered can be found in the full event report.