Academic Preparation Kit

ACADEMIC PREPARATION KIT

EYP-UA WEEKEEND IN KHARKIV 20-21 OF SEPTEMBER, 2014

THE EUROPEAN YOUTH PARLIAMENT – UKRAINE

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) Trying to escape the economic crisis, many graduates are moving to Western countries with more stable labor markets looking for a better life. The so called “brain drain” leads to reduction of job offerings as well as numerous losses of intellectual capital. What measures can be taken in order to tackle this issue and in the same time support the knowledge exchange as a result of globalization?

Introduction The lack of decent employment opportunities has led many to seek employment abroad. Some of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe are among those most affected by both internal and external migration.

For example, 40 per cent of the Albanian workforce is working abroad, and a quarter of the economically active population of the Republic of Moldova is working outside the country.

This problem is widespread among the youth, who is attracted by the prosperity of Western countries and is most likely to emigrate in search of better life, resulting in loss of intellectual potential and increase of the unemployment rate for the host countries.

Key conflicts Low salaries and inefficient working conditions, caused by economic crisis of 2008, as well as inflation are the main motives that trigger the movement to Western countries with better living standards and facilities.

Moreover, the large outflow of skilled and well-educated people from less economically developed countries leads to brain drain, which can adversely impact growth and development.

What is more, university graduates tend to leave for Western European countries to get their master`s degree, which eventually results in them staying abroad.

Measures already in place Through its global network of more than 440 offices, International Organization of Migration (IOM) is doing everything possible to bring together governments, civil society and the private sector to establish labour migration programmes and mechanisms that balance their various interests, and address migrants’ needs.

1,2 million Ukrainians are labour migrants, according to the Labour Migration Survey 2012, carried out by the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, in cooperation with the Institute of Demography and Social Researches in the framework of the European Union funded Technical Cooperation Project “Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skills Dimensions”. The project is implemented by the International 2

Labour Organization (ILO) in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Each year more than 10 billion Euros are invested through the European Social Fund (ESF) to improve job prospects for the population.

Key questions: -

What measures should be taken in order to keep skilled employees in their own countries, while ensuring the exchange of data among Member States?

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How can Ukrainian government influence the brain drain and encourage young people to stay?

Key words: brain drain, social dumping, foreign labor, International Labour Organisation, International Migration Organisation, European Social Fund Links for further research: 1. http://www.ilo.org 2. http://www.iom.int 3. Labour mobility in the EU: challenges and perspectives for a genuine European labor market http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-14-491_en.htm 4. A Ukrainian Brain Drain http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/a-ukrainianbrain-drain Vlad Kozachuk and Olga Budinskaya

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Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) Deadly infection: HIV remains a significant public health issue with the WTO estimating more than 2 million infected in Europe. As Ukraine and Estonia are among the leading countries, what steps must be taken to prevent the spread of the incurable disease?

Introduction The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ukraine has the highest level in Europe and is one of the fastest growing in the world as it has already surpassed the HIV/AIDS rate of 2% in 2010.

There is no cure for HIV/AIDS, but there is a therapy (Anti-Retroviral Therapy). The goal of which is to keep the virus’ activity to a minimum, support the patient’s immune system, and prevent the outbreak of AIDS. One of the major issues this topic presents is that those life-saving drugs are unfortunately not available for a majority of the people who need them urgently. The spreading of this infection is a real challenge not for the people injured but also for the country’s healthcare system.

Key conflicts The HIV crisis has increased health spending in Ukraine, Russia and Estonia from 1 to 3 percent of the nations’ gross domestic product and cut annual GDP growth by 1 percent due to premature death among the productive population.

HIV is transmitted by three main routes: sexual contact, exposure to infected body fluids or tissues and from mother to child during pregnancy, delivery, or breastfeeding (known as vertical transmission). According to the newly reported cases with information about transmission mode in 2011 (99%), 59.8% were infected through heterosexual contact, 38.4% through injecting drug use, 0.8% through sex between men and 1.0% through mother-to-child transmission. The percentage of people who inject drugs among new HIV cases with a known route of transmission has decreased significantly (from 84% in 1997 to 38.4% in 2011). Indeed, over 80% of current infections occur in this region with people less than 30 years of age.

Taking undiagnosed infections into account, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the WHO estimate that 230 000 (180 000 – 310 000) people were living with HIV in Ukraine at the end of 2011 and that 22 000 people died from AIDS-related causes during 2011.

Measures already in place: During the last decade lots of different initiatives were created to fight against HIV/AIDS spreading.

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 In 2011, WHO Member States adopted a new global health sector strategy on HIV/AIDS for 2011-2015. The strategy outlines four strategic directions to guide actions by WHO and countries for five years: optimising HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care outcomes; leveraging broader health outcomes through HIV responses; building strong and sustainable health systems; and addressing inequalities and advance human rights[1]  The European Commission has developed an Action plan in EU and neighbouring countries for 2014-2016. Actions are focused on HIV prevention, early treatment and care.  In 2011, Ukraine signed a Partnership Framework between the government of the United States of America and The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on cooperation in countering HIV/AIDS in 2011 – 2015. According to the agreed framework, Ukraine works in several areas combating HIV in Ukraine: reducing the level of HIV transmission, improving the quality and cost efficiency of HIV prevention, strengthening national and local capacity[3] Key questions: How can the national health care systems support those who are HIV infected?

What steps should be taken to prevent the spread of the incurable disease?

How can the already existing measures be optimised?

Keywords Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Anti-Retroviral Therapy(ART), HIV crisis.

Links for further research: 1. Strategic plan 2011-2015 http://www.gnpplus.net/about-gnp/strategic-plan-2011-2015/ 2. HIV/AIDS, Children and Youth Programme in Ukraine http://www.unicef.org/ukraine/activities_11384.html 3. Partnership to Fight HIV/AIDS in Ukraine http://www.pepfar.gov/documents/organization/199354.pdf Kostyantyn Lyabuk and Iryna Struk

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Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) Double standards: Gender discrimination and stereotypes at workplace are creating unequal opportunities in the labour market. What steps should the EU take to prevent economic disparity between men and women?

Introduction Welcome to the 21st century, where people have equal rights, opportunities and free access to everything they wish for. But is it really true? Women make up more than a half of the population of European Union; still just a few of them at governance level.

After European Elections on the 25th of May women take up 37 percent of the seats in the Parliament, what shows us a two percent increase compared to the previous elections. Even after such a significant result has been achieved, there is still so much work to do: double standards never work at work Key Conflicts Gender refers to denying the rights or privileges of people based on their gender.

Even in the twenty first century female population gets through a lot to reach their goals in life, especially, when it comes to career perspectives. Mostly, being a good worker with an excellent knowledge is not enough for a woman, as promotions, salary and tasks are often divided and based on worker’s gender, not abilities. For example, there are 54% or women in Ukraine, but 90% of the Parliament is represented by men. Moreover, Ukrainian female workers get 70% less than male part of population.

Measures taken The Women’s charter was adapted by European Commission in March 2010, which declared economic independence, equal pay for both men and women. Women get decision making power, as well as respect for their dignity and integrity, protected by law. Equality between women and men is a fundamental right, enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Key questions 1. What measures can be taken by the government in order to increase the women’s employment?

2. What actions should be undertaken in order to ensure equal opportunities and privileges for both men and women? Can the stereotype question be solved once and for all?

Key words: double standards, gender-based violence, Women’s Charter, discrimination,

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Links for further research: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/genderequality/files/your_rights/eu_gender_equality_law_ update2013_en.pdf http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/gender-decision-making/index_en.htm http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52010DC0078&from=en http://ec.europa.eu/justice/genderequality/files/strategy_equality_women_men_en.pdf http://www.womenlobby.org/news/european-international-news/article/europeanparliament-femm-committee-1075?lang=de http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/economic-governance/forum-economicministers-meeting-femm/ Alex Zhuk and Vlada Mykhailova

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Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) With more than 200,000 new car registrations per year, Ukraine is becoming an increasingly automobile-dependent state, which already results in traffic congestion in big cities and undermines efficiency of public transport.

Considering the world's best practices of smart and multimodal transport systems, how can the urban mobility be redesigned to provide comfortable transportation for citizens and reduce the burden upon the environment?

Introduction As urban areas grow and the number of cars increases drastically with each passing year, the problem of efficiency of transportation becomes as urgent as ever.

People move continuously in space from origins for a purpose or to engage in an activity at destinations. Trips are made using different means of transport the can be motorized or non motorized modes of transport. Trips that are made with only one mode of transport are known as unimodal trips. On the contrary, the human mobility within an urban area almost always happens in a multimodal transportation network.

A multimodal transport system as defined by Bielli (2006), is “the combination of all traveller modes and kinds of transport system operated through various systems�.

From this definition we can distinguish the main elements of multimodal transport system as travellers, different modes of transport and different operators.

Key conflicts One of the challenges of intermodal transport is changing between modes. Despite proximity, transfers can be difficult.

The effectiveness of a mixed-mode commute can be measured in many ways: speed to destination, convenience, security, environmental impact, and proximity to mass transit are all factors. Because mixed-mode commutes rely on a certain degree of coordination, scheduling issues with mass transit can often be an issue. For example, a sometimes-late train can be an annoyance, and an often-late train can make a commute impractical.

3. Measures already in place Article 1.1. of the United Nations Multimodal Convention (which has not yet, and may never enter into force) defines multimodal transport as follows: "'International multimodal transport' means the carriage of goods by at least two different modes of transport on the basis of a multimodal transport contract from a place in one country at which the goods are taken in charge by the multimodal transport operator to a place designated for delivery situated in a different country".

Multimodal transport research is being conducted across a wide range of government, commercial and academic centres. The Research and Innovative 8

Technology Administration (RITA) within the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) chairs an inter-agency Research, Development and Technology (RD&T) Planning Team. The University Transportation Center (UTC) program, which consists of more than 100 universities nationwide conducts multi-modal research and education programs. The European Commission's Freight Transport Logistics Action Plan has placed special emphasis on researching and developing multimodal freight transport networks in Europe, leading to focused research efforts such as e-Freight and FLAGSHIP. The proceedings of the 14th COTA International Conference of Transportation Professionals (held in Changsha, China, July 4-7 2014) contain 363 papers covering current critical transportation issues and research in advancements in transportation development. Topics include: intelligent transportation systems; high speed rail and rail traffic operations; transportation planning, policy, modeling, and economics; traffic safety, security, and emergency response; highway and road construction, maintenance, and management; aviation, marine, and water transportation; freight logistics; and transportation energy, environment, and sustainability issues.

4. Key questions What measures should local governments undertake to popularize public transport?

By what means can the usage of cars be reduced?

What actions should be taken in order to implement an efficient multimodal transport system in Ukrainian city?

5. Key words Multimodal transport system, United Nations Multimodal Convention, unimodal transport system 6. Links http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/topics/transportation.htm http://thecityfix.com/blog/on-the-move-future-multimodal-integration-akshay-mani/ http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/tdmtconf17_en.pdf http://www.vtpi.org/multimodal_planning.pdf Lina Tarashevska

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