SCO to unleash youth technology, innovation

By A Staff Reporter, Kathmandu, June 3: Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Youth Technology and Innovation Forum was held online and offline in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province on Thursday.

Officials from SCO member countries and observer states, foreign diplomats in China, young scientists and entrepreneurs, and representatives from youth organisations expressed their commitment to promoting win-win cooperation among the nations through the exchanges in technology and innovation.

Last year, China proposed organising the forum to enhance youth innovation among SCO countries.

Shen Yueyue, vice-chairperson of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, said that the SCO attached priority to the friendly exchanges and technology and innovation cooperation among the youth.

“Youths, being vibrant forces for people-to-people exchanges, should champion the "Shanghai Spirit" and devote themselves to friendship and cooperation between SCO countries,” said Shen, also president of the Good-Neighbourly Friendship and Cooperation Committee (GNFCC) of SCO.

SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming said in a video speech that youth cooperation was an important priority within the SCO cooperation agenda. “About 800 million young people in the SCO member states are the future hope of the organization and the bearers of the baton of future SCO development,” said Zhang, calling for measures to prevent youth from participating in activities of terrorist, separatist and extremist groups.

Uzbekistan's Deputy Prime Minister Aziz Abduhakimov, via a video, said, “Since half of the world's youth live in its territory, the future, security, sustainable development and well-being of a huge part of Eurasia directly depends on how we raise the younger generation.”

Nikolai Snopkov, first deputy prime minister of Belarus, said the country wanted to participate in various technological innovation projects within the framework of the SCO.

With the theme of "Youth Building Dreams of Technology, Innovation Leading the Future," the forum held six parallel sessions on youth innovation and cooperation, people's health, digital economy development, AI, green development, poverty alleviation collaboration and rural development.

The Forum was jointly hosted by the GNFCC of the SCO, All-China Youth Federation, and the People’s Government of Guangdong Province, and organised by the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government.

“Through discussions on diversified topics and views representing different perspectives, the parallel session encouraged young people to seize the opportunities presented by the times, bear in mind the well-being of the people, enhance exchanges and cooperation with each other, and contribute their talents to the building of a beautiful shared future for mankind,” said a press statement issued by the GNFCC.

Established in 2001, Nepal is a dialogue partner of the 8-member SCO.