Dear Kurdistani friends,

I am most delighted to have each and everyone of you here present tonight. All you youngsters who are here tonight are the first youth generation to experience a free Kurdistan. Each and everyone of you here tonight have aspirations, dreams and goals to achieve.

We, the older generation, are challenged to, for the first time, freely govern ourselves and our youth. Challenged to create a strong and stable region, reliable institutions and governing bodies. We are challenged to create a rich society where our youth can get the opportunities you need to achieve your goals.

Yes, it is so that the government has many obligations towards its citizens.
But in the world’s modern democratic countries the citizens, have along with their rightful rights also obligations. This is the kind of society we are aspiring to achieve:
- Where companies have the capacity to generate job opportunities and a strong economy.
- Where schools and universities have inspiring teachers that help creating students who will contribute to society.
- And where the youth are active and bring forward new ideas and are society’s force to move forward.
- Where journalists and the media understand their power and the responsibilities that come with it. To cover and analyze events truthfully and be a source of information and trust instead of hearsay.

We must all work to make the Kurdistan region a place where people want to come, where people want to live, not a place that youngsters leave to follow their broken dreams in Europe.

These are the challenges and the responsibility of all of us to overcome. Many countries have had the benefit of several hundred years of experience to achieve these same goals. We are less fortunate in that way, but have the opportunity create this for ourselves today. We must all be patient and tolerant with each other but we must also work extra-hard and support each other and united create the best society for all of us.

The Kurdistan Region’s first ever Ministry of Sports and Youth is doing its part by encouraging youth and infuse confidence in them to believe in their competence and always strive for higher individual and collective goals.

The Ministry’s youth policy strives that the Kurdistan Region one day will have a free, independent, creative, active, educated and stimulated youth population.
       

In accordance with the Ministry´s Youth road map, one of our programs that we have organized, in cooperation with People`s Development Association, KOMAK, People Aid Organization and the Kurdistan Empowering Youth Organization strives to empower youth leaders in Kurdistan. The project, a ten week long program when 200 young girls and boys are educated in leadership, health issues, women`s issues, environmental issues, corruption, education, media, drug abuse, unemployment and poverty. The aim of the project is to empower youth activists and leaders in Kurdistan through an educational program.

The British philosopher Francis Bacon once said: Knowledge is power. And I would like to follow his lead and emphasize here before all of you, education and knowledge is the most important tool for us to achieve greatness in all aspects of life.

This is the reason why we give out awards specifically to journalists this evening since they have a very important role in a democratic society to spread out information to the general public. The media can be an educational tool for our people if used correctly.

The role of journalists is crucial as they are people´s way to have access to the political process, to governance and politics, the developments in the world, in the community, in the sphere of culture and sports. Without the media, there is no insight into the events of the world. Journalists have therefore an important role to provide citizens with correct and truthful information.

In modern democratic societies the media plays another important role in the mechanism of checks and balances where they can hold politicians and civil servants accountable for corruption and misuse of power. The media is because of its strong influence considered as a power in line with the governing and judicial powers. Journalists have also a unique position to function as opinion makers by shedding light and drawing attention to issues that are neglected and by these means shape the political climate and agenda.   

With responsible journalists that follow work ethics and rules of conduct, with a strong media that bring people awareness, we can be sure that we are moving in the right direction towards the democratic Kurdistan Region that we are aspiring for.

This annual ceremony is one more of the Ministry of Sports and Youth’s efforts to create a better society. It is nice to meet and have a warm entertaining evening together but this ceremony is so much more. The awards are to show that we see hard work and reward it, that active and positive role models in society are important and cherished and that we applaud the award winners here on stage. Most importantly the rest of you will hopefully aspire to be the ones who stand here next year.

I hope this night and the award winners will be inspirational for all of us here!

Enjoy and thank you!