TEHRAN –The director of Iran's Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults – Kanoon has proposed the formation of a union for children and youth in member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. 

In a speech at the 2023 Shanghai Cooperation Organization Youth Campus and SCO Youth Development Forum in the Chinese city of Dunhuang on Monday, Hamed Alamati emphasized the significance of cooperation among member countries of the organization to create a more hopeful and positive environment for young people.

There is a need for a spiritual upbringing for children to cultivate true intelligence and a focus on wisdom as opposed to pleasure-seeking and political intrigues, he added.  

The formation of an exclusive union for children and youth within the organization could act as a means of uniting member countries towards a bright future of mutual growth and development, he mentioned. 

With nine official and four observer members, the SCO was established by China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan in 2001. It now represents the largest regional market in the world.

The organization, a Eurasian political, economic, security, and defense organization, is responsible for 40 percent of the world’s population and 28 percent of global GDP.

In July, Iran finished all the procedural measures required for the membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and became a full member of the regional bloc.

Iran’s membership was announced during the 23rd summit of the SCO in New Delhi. At the summit, Iran was introduced as the ninth member of the SCO, with other member states welcoming it into the organization.

SAB/