May 30, 2023, The next national stage of the International Debate Championship of Eurasian Muslim Countries was held at the Azerbaijan State University of Economics with the participation of 60 students from different universities of Azerbaijan, organized by the Eurasian Regional Center of the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF-ERC) and the “Debates in Civil Society” Public Union.
As is known, the debate championships have been held in Azerbaijan and a number of other Eurasian countries for two years on the initiative of the ICYF-ERC. This year’s debate championships are dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Azerbaijan’s national leader Heydar Aliyev, and the main purpose is to contribute to the improvement of public speaking, communication and leadership skills of young people, as well as to achieve the recognition of Heydar Aliyev’s personality in a wider audience.
At the opening ceremony, Vusal Gurbanov, Acting Director General of the ICYF-ERC, welcomed the participants and spoke about the importance of the topic to be discussed at the debate championship. He also noted that the championship dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the national leader Heydar Aliyev had already been held in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, where Heydar Aliyev’s oratory skills and leadership abilities were studied. At the end of his speech, Vusal Gurbanov gave brief information about the activities of the institution he represents, especially about the fight against Islamophobia.
In her congratulatory speech, Ulviya Akhundova, Chairman of the “Debate in Civil Society” Public Union, expressed her gratitude for the cooperation with the Eurasian Regional Center of ICYF in the framework of the debate championship held since last year, and called on the participants to be active in the debate.
The main topic of the two-day debate championship, held in Azerbaijani and English languages, was “The presence of multicultural values in society is the main factor preventing Islamophobia”.
The teams and young people, distinguished by their special talents and abilities, as well as, the winners will be awarded medals, cash, and special gifts.
The main goals of the debate championships are to develop the debating culture and skills of young people living in the Eurasian space, to increase their leadership and representation abilities, and to contribute to the activities of young people in the social and political sphere.
The ICYF-ERC plans to hold this project in a number of Eurasian countries during 2023.