The Regional Under Secretary of the Presidency said the commitment of youngsters in European affairs is fundamental to the consolidation of the European project.

Speaking at the opening session of the 1st Regional Meeting of European Clubs held in Angra do Heroísmo on Saturday, Rodrigo Oliveira said the fact that the Azores are geographically an outermost region cannot be a barrier that prevents "our island from playing a key role in the project of European construction."

In his speech, the Regional Under Secretary considered that Azorean youngsters have demonstrated an "in-depth knowledge" of the reality, history and importance of the European Union at several events, such as the celebrations of Europe Day and the competitions on Community themes.

"A different reality is perhaps the perception of some rights and benefits of the European Union," such as mobility or the single currency, admitted Rodrigo Oliveira. The government official considered the importance of enhancing the dissemination of these "rights and benefits" brought by the European Union among youngsters.

With regard to mobility, the government official mentioned the importance of encouraging youngsters to participate in training programmes, traineeships in Community countries or programmes promoted by Regions, as the Eurodyssey exchange programme.

The Regional Under Secretary admitted that, currently, "the image of the European Union is not very positive," which is due to the "lack of response to our current context."

"We should bear in mind that we need youngsters with their proactive attitude and initiative" in order to move forward with the project of European construction.

Rodrigo Oliveira also called the attention for the fact that the abstention rate for the elections to the European Parliament is very high in Portugal, especially in the Azores. The government official finds this situation quite strange since European affairs are always present in the Region, through the Media, particularly in the areas related to agriculture, fisheries and environment, being crucial sectors for the archipelago.

Thus, the government official stressed the importance of tackling this trend among youngsters as a way of raising the awareness of voters for the reach of these elections. The Under Secretary warned that the lack of interest in the election of European representatives "in this particular European context" could even lead to "the danger of electing xenophobic and anti-European parties to the European Parliament."

In the Azores, there are over twenty European Clubs in schools across the archipelago.