[5]The Youth Initiative for the Promotion of Peace in the North Caucasus (YIPP) program contributed to the stability and prosperity of the North Caucasus and reduced the potential for violent conflict in the region by empowering youth with vocational, leadership, and conflict mitigation skills to promote positive change in their communities.
YIPP was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). IREX worked on the project with the International Medical Corps (IMC), the Southern Regional Resource Center (SRRC), and the Children’s Fund of North Ossetia (CFNO).
This project is now closed.
• Provide youth with professional and life skills that are in demand in targeted communities
• Foster cultural understanding among youth from different backgrounds through sports and leadership camps
• Support youth-initiated community development through trainings and small grants
• Increase youth access to information through establishing sustainable centers for accessing technology (CATs)
The growth of the Russian economy in recent years has been rapid but uneven. The North Caucasus republics lag behind other parts of the Russian Federation in economic development and suffer from high unemployment, especially among the large youth population. Economic problems exacerbate social tensions among the more than 30 ethnic and linguistic groups in the region. Lack of economic opportunity combined with isolation from the rest of Russia and the outside world leads to frustration and radicalization among North Caucasus youth, with destabilizing effects in Russia and beyond.
Professional and Life Skills Development: Vulnerable youth in 24 communities in eight North Caucasus republics attend Entrepreneurship and Business Development, NGO Management, or Occupational Skills trainings in order to gain the skills they need to obtain employment or create new employment opportunities. All participants also receive life skills training covering CPR, health, and gender and tolerance. Outstanding alumni have the opportunity to intern with local businesses.
Youth Sports and Leadership Camps: YIPP Youth Sports and Leadership Camps bring together vulnerable youth from across the North Caucasus to participate in an innovative program that fosters cross-cultural communication and understanding, strengthens leadership skills, and promotes active civic participation.
Youth Trainings: YIPP groomed a cadre of certified youth trainers from all eight North Caucasus republics who conduct trainings on a range of topics including conflict mitigation, civic education, community mobilization, and financial literacy for youth across the region.
Small Grants Program: YIPP provides youth-focused NGOs across the North Caucasus with small grants to conduct social, sports, and community development projects, contributing to the development of a vibrant civil society sector in the region. A pilot program also provides vulnerable youth in Chechnya with grants to start or expand small businesses.
Centers for Accessing Technology (CATs): YIPP has established eight sustainable CATs across the North Caucasus to reduce the isolation of youth in the region and improve their employment prospects by providing free Internet access and offering basic computer courses as well as more advanced courses to meet community demand.
More than 12,500 people from some 25 ethnic groups have participated in YIPP events geared toward strengthening understanding and mitigating conflict among different groups in the North Caucasus
More than 1,200 vulnerable youth from 8 regions of the North Caucasus have improved their employment prospects through completing Vocational and Life Skills trainings
More than 1,500 vulnerable youth from across the North Caucasus have improved their computer skills and gained access to information through the YIPP CATs.
yipp@irex.org [6]