Doha, November 15 (QNA) - The Arab Youth Forum for Peace and Security -Doha 2026 held a panel discussion Sunday on advancing effective youth participation, moving from the Arab Youth Strategy to institutional inclusion in the peace architecture, as its first day featured discussions and workshops aimed at strengthening young people's role in peacebuilding and security.

The panel brought together HE Minister of Youth of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Dr. Raed Al Adwan; HE Minister Plenipotentiary and Director of the Youth and Sports Department at the Arab League General Secretariat, Dr. Faisal Ali Ghassal; HE UNESCO Representative to the Gulf States and Yemen and Director of the UNESCO Office in Doha, Salah Al Din Zaki Khaled; and Youth Affairs Consultant and Head of the Team Following Up on the Qatar National Youth Policy Action Plan, Dr. Issa Al Hurr, while Nouf Khamis Al Muraikhi moderated the panel.

Participants discussed ways to strengthen young people's presence in institutions involved in peacebuilding and security, ensure their active participation in decision-making, and translate strategic directions into practical programs and initiatives. They stressed the importance of moving far beyond involving young people in activities and initiatives to institutionalizing their participation in policies and programs, while strengthening their role as partners capable of setting priorities, proposing solutions and contributing to building safer and more stable societies.

The first day's program featured six parallel workshops divided into two main groups. The first, titled An Enabling Environment for Participation: Governance, Protection and Trust-Building, examined young people's role in governance amid rapid transformations, their protection as a pathway to peacebuilding, youth-led dialogue, trust-building between generations and ways to measure the impact of youth initiatives.

Another panel discussion, titled Building Sustainable, Multilateral Partnerships to Advance Youth Participation for Peace, brought together representatives from the Arab League, the United Nations Population Fund, Search for Common Ground, Qatar University and Qatar Fund for Development.

The discussions focused on deepening partnerships and expanding opportunities for young people to contribute to peacebuilding.

The second workshop group, titled Pathways to Participation: From Community Initiatives to the Decision-Making Table, addressed the role of education, rights and opportunities in empowering young people and strengthening their ability to influence decisions, alongside the importance of youth networks, regional coordination and mechanisms for involving young people in formal governance and peace processes.

The forum will continue Monday with a keynote session titled From Strategy to Implementation, which will examine ways to operationalize national pathways under the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda and translate strategic directions into actionable programs and initiatives.

The second day will also feature six parallel workshops addressing cross-sector partnerships and capacity-building, strengthening youth resilience through sports, the role of education, dialogue and debate in peacebuilding, and the use of innovation, technology and artificial intelligence to develop sustainable youth partnerships.

The closing sessions are expected to consolidate the outcomes of the three working groups into a joint youth declaration titled Doha Forum Outcomes, featuring practical visions and recommendations that suggest ways to reflect the priorities and aspirations of Arab youth and support the transition from dialogue and the exchange of ideas to actionable initiatives and cooperation pathways that can be implemented and followed up.

The forum is being held in implementation of a decision by the Council of Arab Ministers of Youth and Sports and as an outgrowth of joint Arab efforts to activate the Arab Strategy for Youth, Peace and Security (2023-2028), moving it from the establishment of strategic frameworks and directions to practical implementation by strengthening youth participation in peacebuilding, expanding their presence in institutions and decision-making processes, and developing Arab and international partnerships to address challenges and enhance the security and stability of societies.

Hosting the forum in Doha reflects the State of Qatar's commitment, represented by the Ministry of Sports and Youth, to supporting joint Arab youth action and strengthening partnerships with the Arab League and regional and international institutions and organizations.

It also seeks to expand opportunities for young people to discuss priority issues and contribute to building a safer, more peaceful and stable Arab future. (QNA)