Podgorica, 23 September 2026 – The Western Balkans Youth Ministerial Meeting, held within the framework of the Berlin Process, brought together ministers and representatives of institutions responsible for youth from across the region, alongside representatives of embassies, regional and international organizations, and partners, to discuss the next steps for regional youth cooperation, stronger youth participation in decision-making processes, and concrete ways to translate their needs and recommendations into action.
Organized by the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) and the Ministry of Sports and Youth of Montenegro, the meeting took place under the auspices of Government of Montenegro within Berlin Process framework, and in the year marking RYCO’s 10th anniversary. The gathering in Podgorica also continued the dialogue initiated at the Western Balkans Youth Forum, held in Budva in June within the Berlin Process, where young people from across the region developed recommendations outlining the Western Balkans they want to live in by 2030 and the changes needed to make that vision a reality. Their recommendations call, among other things, for greater investment in youth skills, mobility, innovation and entrepreneurship, stronger support for peace and security, democratic participation and inclusion, as well as meaningful youth involvement in the green transition and decision-making processes.
Opening the meeting, RYCO Secretary General Vladimir Obradović highlighted the importance of political support for regional cooperation and the active participation of young people in reform processes.
“Regional youth cooperation is built through political will, sustained commitment, and a shared vision for the future of the Western Balkans. The region’s economic, social, and security challenges cannot be addressed without young people. If our reforms are to be sustainable and credible, young people must be recognized not merely as beneficiaries, but as partners in shaping and implementing them,” Obradović said.
Obradović also reflected on RYCO’s achievements over the past decade. More than 85,000 young people have participated in its programs and initiatives, while more than EUR 19 million has been invested in regional youth cooperation, supporting over 400 projects and ideas across the Western Balkans.
One of the central topics of the meeting was the new RYCO Youth Trust Fund – RYCOncile, envisaged as a regional multi-donor mechanism to support youth initiatives, regional cooperation, mobility, inclusion, reconciliation and trust-building.
Montenegro’s Minister of Sports and Youth Zoran Jojić announced that the Government of Montenegro would support the establishment of the Fund with a contribution of EUR 25,000, stressing that regional cooperation must be backed by concrete institutional and financial support.
“Young people across the Western Balkans are already demonstrating their willingness to cooperate, exchange ideas and find common solutions. It is our responsibility to provide them with the space, trust and opportunities to turn that willingness into concrete results. By supporting the RYCO Youth Trust Fund, we want to make a tangible contribution to creating new opportunities for young people across the region,” Jojić said.
Facilitated by RYCO Deputy Secretary General Kreshnik Loka, the ministerial sessions focused on priorities for regional youth cooperation, stronger youth participation in reform agendas, and ways to translate political support into sustainable programs and concrete opportunities for young people across the region.
The Ministerial Meeting also marked another step in the process initiated at the Youth Forum in Budva, bringing young people’s recommendations to decision-makers in Podgorica with the aim of ensuring concrete institutional follow-up. The dialogue will continue through the upcoming Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the Berlin Process Summit, where RYCO will continue to advocate for regional youth cooperation and young people’s voices to remain an integral part of the broader regional and European processes.
The Western Balkans Youth Ministerial Meeting was supported through the multi-donor project Western Balkans School Exchange Scheme, funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and jointly implemented by the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
