Chargé d’Affaires Colleen Hyland Remarks at the MOU Signing Ceremony, May 23, 2019
Good morning and welcome to the municipal education directors. I am pleased to join you to mark the start of USAID’s After School Support for Teens (ASSET) program in your municipalities.
ASSET’s motto preparing youth for 21st century life and work tells you exactly what their program is about.
Kosovo is blessed with a young and energetic population. In order to take advantage of this demographic dividend, now is the right time to invest in this generation, both in terms of hard academic skills and soft skills. Making this investment through ASSET will help lay the bedrock for a prosperous and dynamic economy, as well as a vibrant democracy. ASSET, which complements what students are learning in school, builds the kind of communication, teamwork, and critical-thinking skills that are essential in today’s workplace.
This program also provides career counseling, entrepreneurial education, and creative workspaces for students, as well as a host of new resources for teachers.
By signing these agreements today, USAID, the Ministry of Education, and your municipalities are pledging to invest in Kosovo’s youth to contribute to Kosovo’s prosperity.
While USAID plays a supporting role in this partnership, the success of this program depends on your leadership at the national and municipal levels.
Sixteen high schools is a strong start. It does not reach all of Kosovo’s eager youth, but it does provide your municipalities with a model that you can and should scale nationwide.
