Fifteen youth NGOs and initiative groups throughout Moldova have recently completed projects to increase youth leadership in community and civic affairs, Info-Prim Neo reports. The Youth Leader initiative was part of the USAID/IREX Moldova Citizen Participation Program (CPP), a five-year project to expand citizen awareness, promote civic engagement, and encourage self-reliance, while improving living and social conditions throughout Moldova. According to a press release from IREX/CPP, the major objective of this initiative was to engage youth in decision-making process and increase their leadership capacity. In September 2007, CPP awarded fifteen youth groups with grants to implement various projects that were completed in January. The key project requirements were that projects be initiated, led and implemented exclusively by youth with adults providing support only when necessary. The total value of the grants was approximately seventy thousand dollars and the projects impacted over twenty-one thousand people. The youth groups’ activities were diverse and included: purchasing equipment to revitalize sport centers, creating school radio networks, and training youth in business. “This particular round of projects has given youth the opportunity to identify and solve community problems which will have a direct impact on their lives,” explained Iulia Sevciuc, Sr. Program Associate for Special Projects. Constantin Vlas, a 17-year-old leader of the youth group from Sarata Galbena village, explained that before cooperating with CPP, youth did not have a a place to gather and socialize. To address this problem, the youth decided to renovate the village square. He remarked, “The square is just the beginning…we’ll continue improving things. Now we know we can make changes and improve our community. The Youth Leaders initiative is a part of CPP’s Civil Society component, which has awarded one hundred eighty-five grants to community groups and NGOs. CPP is financed by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and administered by the International Research Exchanges Board (IREX).