Youth up to the age of 35 could learn more about culture, thanks to the revival of the Canada Youth Exchange Program. The Philippines National Youth Commission and Canada World Youth signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) recently.

The Canadian World Youth Program will allow youth from both the Philippines and Canada to learn first-hand how the people of each country live and work together. Secretary Leoncio Evasco says that youth will play a very strategic role in all facets of governance.

“This new MOU will open up new avenues for people-people exchanges, shared experiences and enhanced dialogue between young people from both countries. This will further strengthen our bilateral ties and give Canadian and Filipino youth the unique opportunity to live and work in another country, experience another culture, and make an important contribution through assisting in small-scale community projects,” says Neil Reeder, the former Canadian Ambassador of Canada to the Philippines.

Rita S Karakas, President & CEO of Canada World Youth says the alumni’s participation in the program was life-changing.

“Nowhere is this truer than in the Philippines where our alumni have been the driving force behind the setting up of the first CWY Global Alliance, our new model for youth exchanges. Canada World Youth is one of the few organizations in the world that offers a two-part reciprocal program with one program phase occurring in Canada and the second taking place in one or more exchange countries,” says Karakas.

Canada World Youth enriches the lives of youth with ages up to 35 who want to become informed and active global citizens. For more than 40 years, 38,000 youth and 12,000 host families have participated in CWY programs, in Canada and abroad.