Further to their agreement at the March 2025 Geneva informal meeting to establish a Technical Committee on Youth, the Greek Cypriot leader, Mr. Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mr. Ersin Tatar, have today shared with the United Nations—and with each other—the list of members who will serve on the Committee. 

The UN in Cyprus encourages the Committee to promote dialogue, foster engagement, and support initiatives that reflect the shared aspirations, needs, and challenges of young people across the island. 

Background: The first Technical Committees were established in 2008, following an agreement between the then Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders, with the facilitation of the United Nations. These Committees serve as important confidence-building mechanisms, bringing together experts from both communities to address practical, everyday issues affecting people across the island. Each Committee focuses on a specific area of cooperation—ranging from health, environment, and education, to crime, cultural heritage, and humanitarian affairs. Their goal is to foster collaboration, build trust, and improve the lives of all Cypriots through constructive, people-centered engagement. The creation of these Committees reflects a shared commitment to dialogue and reconciliation, while contributing to the broader peace process under the auspices of the United Nations Good Offices Mission in Cyprus.

The Technical Commitee on Youth is the most recent Committee, formed 10 years after the last ones were agreed in 2015 by the then leaders Anastasiades and Akıncı (Gender Equality, Education and Culture). It was also in 2015 that the United Nations adopted the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda. Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo, during her visits to the island in 2023 and 2025, also raised the possibility of forming a Youth Technical Committee and increasing the number of young people on all the other committees with the two leaders.