Half of Brazil’s 34 Million Youth Are Out of School

With over 34 million people between the ages of 15 and 24, Brazil has today more young people than all European countries together. Their problems, such as early pregnancy, difficulty in access to formal education, culture, and jobs, are also monumental.

According to the National Youth Secretary, Beto Cury, over 17 million of Brazilian youngest citizens (51%) are outside the school system.


The Young Voices event, which began today, March 21, intends to discuss the challenges faced by young people and to define an action plan for the next 12 months.


“We are living a very inspiring moment in Brazil because youth themes have acquired an extremely positive status for Brazilian democracy,” said Beto Cury, citing the creation of the Secretariat last year.


Over 100 youngsters participated in the event promoted by the National Youth Secretariat, World Bank, and United Nations (UN) agencies.


The objective is to stimulate young people to participate in the elaboration and implementation of government youth policies.


“This event will foster this dialogue and, no doubt, it will give young people a chance to have a say in the programs already being undertaken by the federal government,” said Matilde Ribeiro, Minister of the Special Secretariat for the Promotion of Racial Equality Policies.


A representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef), Marie-Pierre Poirier, also participated in the opening ceremony.


Translation: Andréa Alves
ABr

Tags:

You May Also Like

A Lula's rally in the Brazilian Northeast

The Red Flag-Waving Throngs Are Back in Brazil for Lula’s Reelection

The crowd rushed toward the helicopter as it landed in the nearby field. As ...

A sugarcane cutter in a Brazilian plantation

Bush’s Concern for Brazilian Ethanol Just Highlights US Hypocrisy

President Bush begins his tour of Latin America this week, hitting Brazil on March ...

Lula Calls Nonsense Christ’s Saying that Poor Need Wait for Heaven After Death

Brazil’s ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called  ‘nonsense’ the biblical statement that the ...

Brazil’s Vice-President: Interests Are Halting Country

The president of the Brazilian Supermarket Association (Abras), João Carlos Oliveira, seemed very optimistic ...

Brazil’s Petrobras to Assume Bigger Role in Bolivia’s Oil

The situation has never been clearer as far as relations between Petrobras – Brazilian ...

For Poorer and Poorer

In the root of Brazil’s extreme poverty is the abject gap between the haves ...

Death Threats Are Part of Daily Life for Brazil’s Human Rights Activists

The UN rapporteur for human rights, Hina Jilani, recently visited  Brazil to become more ...

Democrats Have a Chance to Reshape Bush’s Flawed Latin American Policy

Is there, or will there be, a revitalized Democratic Latin American policy as distinct ...

Brazilian Study Shows Hydropower Pollutes 4 Times More than Fossil-Fuel

Hydropower plants have long been a byword for clean energy. But researchers warn that ...

Brazil’s Approach and Help Applauded in Africa

The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is on a trip to ...