More information on the history of ASEAN and youth in ASEAN can be found at the Youth@ASEAN homepage.

Some major ASEAN initiatives that the NYC facilitates include:

1. Workshops on Manpower Development & E-Services and Policy Development

The workshops on Manpower Development & E-Services and Policy Development for Indonesian youth leaders and youth officials arose out of a study visit by NYC to Indonesia in October 2002.

Since 2003, NYC has organised and funded three such workshops. The purpose of the workshops was to share with Indonesian youth leaders on Singapore ’s experience in manpower development, policy development and governance. The workshop programme includes lectures, case-studies and institutional visits to facilitate discussions and learning.

The first workshop on Manpower Development and E-Services was held from 14 to 17 October 2003 at the Civil Service College in Singapore for 18 Indonesian youth leaders. A second workshop was organised from 20 to 25 June 2004 for 32 Indonesian youth officials from the Directorate of Youth Affairs and provinces in Indonesia at the Civil Service College. The delegation was led by Mr Sudrajat Rasyid, Director of Youth Affairs at the Ministry of National Education.

Another workshop focusing on policy development was organised in Jakarta , Indonesia for 20 youth leaders from the provincial districts in Indonesia from 15 to 16 January 2004 . All three workshops were conducted by the Civil Service College International (CSCI).

2. Singapore-Malaysia Youth Camp

The Singapore-Malaysia Youth Camp was initiated in 1991 after former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong’s visit to Malaysia. The camp aims to strengthen bilateral relations between Singapore and Malaysia, and promote friendship and mutual understanding among youths from both countries.

The programme is a joint project between NYC and the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Malaysia. Each year, 40 youths from each country participate in the programme, which features highlights such as outdoor adventure sports, institutional visits, homestay and cultural exchange. Each camp births fresh understanding and resolution for co-operation among the participating youths.

Malaysia played host to the 13th Malaysia-Singapore Youth Camp from 30 June to 7 July 2008 in Pahang. Singapore will be hosting the 14th Singapore-Malaysia Youth Camp from 13 to 21 June 2009.

3. ASEAN+3 SEMINAR ON URBAN YOUTH WORK IV

The ASEAN+3 Urban Youth Work Seminar is designed as a common platform for international and local youth workers and social workers to network and exchange ideas on how to meet urban youths’ needs. It aims to keep youth developers abreast of trends, resources and programmes that will aid in positive youth development as well as enable participants to study and discuss various preventive and remedial approaches and strategies. This is in line with the priorities set in the Manila Declaration adopted by the Ministers responsible for youth during the fourth ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Youth (AMMY IV) in Philippines in 2003, i.e., to prepare youth with the necessary skills & knowledge for long term sustainable development.

NYC will host the ASEAN+3 Seminar on Urban Youth Work IV from 2 to 5 March in Singapore. The theme for the Seminar IV is “Engaging Youths who are At-risk of Being Disengaged from Schools”. The objectives of the Seminar are to:

1. 1. Discuss and recognise factors that put students at risk of disengagement from schools;
2. 2. Showcase existing programmes or models of work that have been helpful in preventing students from leaving school prematurely;
3. 3. Impart to participants, the strategies on student engagement in school, and knowledge on the resources available to deal with the issue of disengaged students;
4. Offer the voices of youth and their real life stories on what helped them to stay in school; and
4. 5. Establish an informal ASEAN+3 network among participants of the seminar and create opportunities for dialogue, discussion and future collaboration.

The 4-day programme will be attended by local and foreign participants comprising youth workers, social workers, counsellors, community partners, educators and other professionals working with youths. The programme will give ASEAN+3 participants the opportunity to interact and share experiences of working with at-risk youths across borders. The seminar will feature workshop sessions conducted by international and local speakers and practitioners with vast experience in the youth work field and include visits to relevant social service agencies in Singapore.