MOSCOW, 12 September (BelTA) – The 12th edition of the international festival Youth for the Union State will take place in Rostov-on-Don on 13-18 September, BelTA learned from the press service of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union State of Belarus and Russia.
The festival will gather about 300 participants from 11 cities of Russia (St Petersburg, Shakhty, Vladikavkaz, Syktyvkar, Kazan, Ulan-Ude, Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, Saratov, Kaliningrad and Orenburg) and also Minsk Oblast, Vitebsk Oblast, Grodno Oblast, Brest Oblast and Gomel Oblast of Belarus. Among the guests of the forum will be the Barvinok folk dance company from Lugansk and soloist of the Donetsk State Academic Music and Drama Theater Aleksei Anosov. Taking part in the youth song competition, a highlight of the forum, will be a representative of Kazakhstan.
The official opening ceremony will take place at the Gorky Rostov Academic Drama Theater on 14 September. Rostov Oblast will host a dozen of concert events with the participation of Belarusian and Russian singers, including Honored Artist of Belarus Alyona Lanskaya, Golos TV show filanist Alexander Panayotov, Provokatsia band, Belorusskaya Pesnya ensemble, and many others. Concerts will also be held in Novocherkassk and Azov.
“The Youth for the Union State festival is a large-scale art forum that was first held in 2005 at the initiative of the Belarus-Russia Union State Parliamentary Assembly. In 2007 the forum became an annual event in Rostov Oblast. The forum is supported by the government and the Legislative Assembly of Rostov Oblast, and also the Youth Policy Committee of Rostov Oblast. The festival is held to reveal the talented youth, create the common cultural space of the Union State, popularize the best ideas in contemporary youth movement and develop cooperation between the youth associations of the two countries,” the press service said.
The program of the festival in Rostov-on-Don will include a joint meeting of the PA commissions on social policy, science, culture and humanitarian activities and on legislation and regulations. The meeting will focus on the issues related to the implementation of the youth policy in the Union State. MPs will consider a draft concept to set up the Youth Chamber at the Parliamentary Assembly. Participants of the meeting will also discuss the role of public associations in the cooperation with the youth. Attending the meeting will be representatives of different ministries and agencies of Belarus and Russia, the Rostov Oblast authorities, youth and patriotic organizations, educational establishments and scientists.