LocationsHako’ak Mehi - Embracing the Dream is Embracing the Future
November 17, 2022
Hako'ak Mehi
Hako’ak Mehi - Embracing the Dream is Embracing the Future
“I want to be a teacher so that I can help children in the same situation as I am today. Every day, I work hard selling tomatoes in order to have my own money to pay for my transportation and studies so that, one day, I can fulfill my dream.”
Hako'ak Mehi/Luisa
Just like Luísa Gomes, 19-year-old, many young people around the world, work every day to achieve their dreams and positively impact their own lives, families, and communities.
Timor-Leste is not only one of the world's youngest countries, it also has one of the world's youngest populations. Thus, youth play a crucial role in shaping the country and has the potential to be the most significant contributor to the nation’s future. Their fresh visions, passions and dynamism are driving forces positioning them as powerful agents of change and progress. But, despite the importance of youth engagement, they are remained under-represented at decision-making tables, feeling unsupported and excluded from designing a future in which they will inevitably be at the forefront.
Hako'ak Mehi/Domingos da Costa
Unemployment is one of the most critical challenges Timorese youth are facing today. Domingos da Costa is unsure whether he will be able to find work after finishing his studies, so his ambition is to become a self-made successful businessman. Every day, he carves his own independent path by selling vegetables from a cart around Taibessi market to support himself and his family. Many other young Timorese, like him, aspire to start their own businesses in order to create job opportunities for themselves and others, standing independently without government support to make ends meet.
UNDP believes that youth have enormous potentials to drive change and advance sustainable development in Timor-Leste. Their voices should not only be heard, but also to be amplified. It is critical to hone their essential skills, such as developing leadership and critical thinking abilities, while the society ensures democracy and equal opportunities by promoting civic engagement to involve them as accountable stakeholders. We can take the helm of the nation's journey along with the hopes and dreams of youth, as well as their individuality and humanity.
Youth Conversations, a project developed by UNDP in collaboration with the National Parliament was launched Hako'ak Mehi - Embracing the Dream with the motto “Mehi bele muda ita nia moris. Mehi hamutuk bele muda ita hotu nia futuru. (Dreaming can change our life. Dreaming together can change the future)”. The campaign advocates the promotion of youth civic engagement by delving into young Timorese dreams, exploring the impact on their lives, families, communities, and ultimately, the country.
An Urban Exhibition in Dili, located between Motael and Habibie Bridge, takes us on a journey through 15 lightboxes which portray aspirations of young Timorese and a future of sustainable development in Timor-Leste.
In the modern habitat of young people, the digital realm, the conversation continues. On both the Youth Conversations facebook page and the ephemeral webpage, we can get to know, in more depth, a different testimony each day. Young viewers are also invited to be a part of the campaign by answering the online survey to contribute to the enrichment of Hako'ak Mehi - Embracing the Dream collection and the creation of an action roadmap for the development of youth civic engagement.
Today's youth will be tomorrow's leaders.
Hako'ak Mehi/Nolasco
