Can young people oversee what is happening in the municipality? The answer is – YES. Seven active young people (aged 16 to 19) from Liepaja city, South Kurzeme and Dobele districts engaged in civic monitoring of municipality and composed monitoring reports from July 5 to July 20, 2023. The youth were drawn to topics such as the reasons behind the suspension of the renovations to the Nīca Secondary School’s Assembly Hall and its prolonged delay, planned activities, volunteering programme, and the qualifications of the team of the project “Liepāja – European Capital of Culture 2027”. The youths also examined the mental and psychological health services offered to young people in Liepaja city and how the municipality communicates about these services to those in need of assistance.
The youth embarked on civic oversight on July 5 after attending training organized by Transparency International Latvia (Delna) titled “How to do Civic Monitoring in Municipality”. Initially, the youths gathered and analysed information available on the internet resources, then created a plan for civic monitoring activities. To gain additional insights on the topic of their interest, they distributed survey questionnaires, interviewed experts and individuals working directly with the topic.
The youths acknowledge that during the civic monitoring, they encountered difficulties in acquiring information on the municipality’s website and other related public resources regarding their areas of interest. Often, while researching these resources, the youths were unable to find the necessary information. The most valuable sources of information acquisition, as per the youths, were interviews with experts. Thanks to the interview with Inta Šoriņa, a board member of the project “Liepaja – European Capital of Culture 2027,” insights were gained about the development of the project and upcoming plans. Additionally, by interviewing Lāsma Petermane, the principal of the Nīca Secondary School, youth reveal the reasons for halting the renovations of school’s Assembly Hall.
Young civic monitors Henrijs Diķis and Evita Cābele from Nica parish (16 years old) state: “The training gave us the opportunity to meet exceptional youths and experts. We understood how youths of our age can influence what transpires in our municipality. Furthermore, we now know how to qualitatively study problems observed in the municipality and write civic monitoring reports about them.” Delna’s advocacy and project manager Agnija Birule emphasises: “The moral compass of youths in various life situations, along with their interest in what’s happening in the municipality, will play a crucial role in maintaining standards of honesty, fairness, and civic participation in municipalities. I am proud of the young civic monitors and learn from them how to identify areas and public policies where the municipality could perform better, as well as formulate recommendations for decision-makers.”
Delna organized training on civic monitoring activities in municipalities for youths in Western region of Latvia from June 29 to July 1, 2023. The training attended seven young people from Liepaja State Gymnasium No. 1, Liepaja Liedaga Secondary School, Liepaja State Technical School, and Nīca Secondary School. Delna and other experts educated the youths about democracy and civic monitoring in municipalities, such fostering the youths’ civic interest in what’s occurring in their municipalities and presenting practical examples on how to engage in municipal oversight. After the training, all the youths decided to carry out practical oversight of municipal work. In August 2023, the youths plan to present monitoring reports to both political decision makers and administration of the Liepaja city and South Kurzeme district municipalities.
Delna implemented training and civic monitoring activities within the ERASMUS+ project “Young People – the Future Civic Monitors (CIVIC EU)”. Delna is one of the project partners and similar activities take place in other project partner countries – Romania, Greece, Slovenia, and Italy. The most motivated young civic monitors from all partner countries will travel to Greece in this year’s autumn for training to gain insights on how youth can influence not only what’s happening in municipalities, but also at national and European Union level.
More about the project can be found on Delna’s website: www.delna.lv.
Contacts:
- Inese Tauriņa, director, inese.taurina@delna.lv, +371 67285585,
- Agnija Birule, advocacy and project manager, agnija.birule@delna.lv.
The project is implemented with co-financing from the European Union. The content of the project activities is the responsibility of Transparency International Latvia (Delna) and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union or the Education and Culture Executive Agency of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
