World Youth Festival launches over 30 national preparation committees across the world

The Russian-led festival aims to develop intercultural and business ties between young people from all over the globe

Some 38 national preparatory committees have begun their work ahead of the 2024 World Youth Festival, set to be held in Sochi, Russia, next March, according to an announcement by the event’s organizers.

The landmark festival aims to bring together over 20,000 young leaders from all over the globe, including from more than 30 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, and facilitate the development of cultural and business ties between young people from various parts of the world.

A panel discussion dedicated to the event and its role in cultivating international cooperation was held on Wednesday as part of the youth program of the Eastern Economic Forum currently taking place in Russia’s Far East city of Vladivostok.

The participants noted that the so-called National Preparatory Committees – which will be tasked with selecting foreign participants, forming delegations, and popularizing the festival – have already begun working in Argentina, Bangladesh, Guatemala, Honduras, Georgia, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Spain, Malaysia, the USA, Panama, and Ecuador, among other countries.

It’s also noted that representatives from Australia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Canada, China, Thailand, Japan, and other countries have also expressed a desire to take part in the event.

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The panelists also brought up the role of universities and students in the festival. Russian Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education Olga Petrova stated that 13 centers for attracting and training volunteers had already been created at Russian universities. She also noted that foreign students had already shown an increased interest in going to college in Russia, adding that the World Youth Festival will aim to further strengthen international cooperation in the field of higher education.

As per Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decree, the 2023 World Youth Festival will be held from March 1 to March 7 2024, on the Sirius Federal Territory in Sochi. The event will function as a platform for open conversation and opinion exchange with the goal of helping youths from different national, cultural, political, and religious backgrounds unite to solve social problems and build a fairer world.