President Mahinda Rajapaksa today declared open the 9th Commonwealth Youth Forum at the Magam Ruhunupura International Convention Center in Hambantota.  

Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Kamalesh Sharma also attended the inauguration ceremony of the forum, which is being held this year under the theme “Inclusive Development – Stronger Together.”

Over 106 youth representatives from 53 countries will participate in the Forum along with 22 observers and 5 representatives of the Task Force. In addition, 25 youth delegates 20 monitors and task force members from Sri Lanka will also attend.

The Commonwealth Youth Forum (CYF) will be held for five days from November 10-14, 2013, in the southern port city of Hambantota.

The CYF is organised with several objectives: To allow youth leaders to exchange ideas and cultures, for youth participants to build skills and network, and to work toward identifying the most vital challenges and opportunities facing young people today.

A Youth-Led Task Force (YLTF) will be responsible for the planning and the organising of the CYF. The Task Force will consist of five youth leaders from Commonwealth member countries and five youth leaders from Sri Lanka, with co-chairs from each group.

The YLTF is responsible for the entire programme, including the daily agenda, themes for plenary sessions and the identification of resource persons, among others.

Four days will be allocated for the main forum of the Commonwealth Youth Forum while one day will be set aside for sightseeing. Participants of the CYF will have the opportunity to take part in professional skills development programmes, capacity building activities and cross-cultural programmes.

The 5th Commonwealth People’s Forum will also commence today in Hikkaduwa and the opening ceremony of the five-day forum will be held in front of the historical Galle Fortress this evening under the patronage of President Rajapaksa.

The theme for this year’s People’s Forum is ‘Equitable Growth and Inclusive Development: Beyond 2015’.