Youth Initiative for the Promotion of Peace in the North Caucasus (YIPP)

Program Overview

The Youth Initiative for the Promotion of Peace (YIPP), funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), constructively engages disenfranchised youth in the North Caucasus. YIPP is committed to providing the region’s young people with new skills and opportunities for economic progress and cultural interaction. A three-year program that began in September 2007, YIPP is implemented by IREX in collaboration with the International Medical Corps (IMC) and other local partners.  It offers civic and business training and funds community projects initiated and implemented by youth. YIPP is also expanding youth access to public information. This effort includes investing in capacity as a means to promote greater information access and communication among youth in the North Caucasus.

Program Objectives

• Objective 1: Develop professional and life skills among youth, increasing their economic potential and ability to participate meaningfully in developing their local communities 
• Objective 2: Cultivate cultural understanding and values for a pluralistic society among youth
• Objective 3: Support youth-initiated local community development
• Objective 4: Improve youth information access and communication within the North Caucasus

Program Activities

YIPP engages youth through a variety of specialized training programs, camps, access and other mass-media forums. Activities include:

• Vocational, technology, media, health, and civil education training tailored to local market demands
• Youth internships
• Youth leadership camps, open to young people from the North Caucasus and other parts of Russia