It was opened within the framework of the program “Development of the network of youth centers and spaces in the Lviv region”.
Today, October 12, the official opening of the youth center took place in the city of Sambir.
At the end of May, the center’s team became one of 16 winners of the competition organized by the Lviv Regional Youth Center. According to its results, funding from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the amount of about 350 thousand hryvnias was directed to the Sambir Youth Center. From them, for 181 thousand hryvnias, a center was built, which will become a center for the development of non-formal education.
Another 170,000 will be used to buy additional equipment for the productive and modern work of the youth center in the city by mid-November, as well as finance the events that will take place there.
Several dozen residents of the territorial community joined the official opening. Among the invited guests were: the deputy head of the Lviv OVA Ivan Sobko, the head of the youth and sports department of the OVA Roman Khimyak and Ninke Voppen, the head of the Lviv regional office of UNICEF. The opening was also attended by Ivan Sapsa, Acting Director. Director of the Lviv Regional Youth Center and Anna Avdiyants – Head of the “Greenhouse Initiatives Platform” organization.
“Youth are the catalyst for change, and only young people have a future. Knowledge acquired in schools and other educational institutions is invaluable, but at the same time it is important to draw it from communication with peers outside of school and active leisure time. Such youth spaces are a place for exchanging ideas and implementing new ideas that scale in a more mature age. Our country needs educated and competitive young people who will emulate and take an example in proper state building,” Ivan Sobko said.
The head of the Lviv regional office of UNICEF, Ninke Woppen, said that for the United Nations Children’s Fund, youth is the center of attention in the work of the organization.
“It is important for us that young people can learn, develop and find new opportunities for themselves. We are very happy to see the youth today, because this space was made for you. Thanks to cooperation with Lviv OVA, we managed to implement this project, and I believe that thanks to the support of the authorities, we will be able to implement all our ideas. This is only the first of 16 spaces that will be opened in the Lviv region, and it is important for us to receive timely feedback from young people so that we equip similar spaces to their needs. Thank you for the contribution of everyone who participated in the implementation of this project,” said Ninke Woppen.
In her welcoming speech, the head of the Sambir Youth Center, Maria Marushchak, emphasized the priority areas of activity – the development of informal education for young people and leisure activities, which will become a modern alternative that will prevent the spread of negative phenomena among different strata of young people.
It should be noted that “Development of the network of youth centers and spaces in the Lviv Region” is implemented by the Lviv Regional Youth Center with the support of the Youth and Sports Department of the Lviv State Regional Government within the framework of the program implemented by the Teplitsia Initiative Platform with the financial support of UNICEF Ukraine and the Government of Germany through the German State Development Bank KFW.