The Brunei Youth Council (Majlis Belia Brunei) strives to become a centralised hub for youths and youth-led non-government organisations (NGOs).
Speaking to The Bruneian during a recent get-together event with His Majesty in the capital, deputy president of the council, Nurul Izyan Anver, shared that the goal is to provide youths with a platform to aid and disseminate correct information.
“As the national youth council, we’re hoping to become the coordinating body for youths, youth-led NGOs and movements, to encourage them to become more proactive and involved in civic engagements as well as entrepreneurship.”
“We are slowly working towards this and are working closely with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS) in terms of capacity building and upskilling programmes.”
Nurul Izyan added that the BYC’s current projects correlate with their mission to ensure youths are proactively involved in contributing and supporting Wawasan 2035.
Additionally, BYC addresses any issues faced by the youth today including unemployment.
“I believe it is one of the nation’s biggest concerns and as a council, we are trying our best to provide support and encouragement to youths to seek help.”
“By help, we mean steering them to increase skills by joining upskilling or mentorship programmes, taking up volunteer work and additionally, we would also post vacancies in various fields on our social media platforms for those looking for work experience.”
Responses from the social media platforms have been well received, according to Nurul Izyan.
“It may not be much but we do hope it will help youths add experience and therefore increase their chances for employment.”
The deputy president added that the council also encourages youths to take up
entrepreneurship; simultaneously creating jobs for others.
“It is encouraging to see the number of youths that have chosen this path. We want to see more and encourage youthpreneurs to join the relevant workshops, programmes and boot camps to receive more benefits and if they are in need, apply for the various grants available.”
“We hope more youths are aware of these benefits they can receive and if they don’t, they can always contact us to ask for further information.”
“With our platform, guidance from various associates, affiliates and strategic partners who are doing and have done tremendous work, we hope to contribute to shaping the youths today and lead them towards the right direction,” she added.
Nurul Izyan shared that BYC’s associates, affiliates and strategic partners include Projek Bina Ukhwah, Persatuan Kemajuan Insan (KESAN), WeCare and ASEAN Youth Advocated Network (AYAN).
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
