Bulletin No. 4 | July 2017
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General information
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Visa to Azerbaijan (status update)
5-9 10-15 16-18
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13th World Scout Youth Forum is coming 41st World Scout Conference – less than a month to start Conference ceremonies and side events
19 20-22 23 25
Scout photo exhibition in Baku downtown Volunteers support Useful tips while you are packing to Azerbaijan Contacts
General information Registered Delegations and other participants As of July 20th 2017, registration for both events had been completed by 1450 persons from 155 countries and territories across the World (incuding guests, accompanying persons and the WOSM team). More than 300 volunteers and staff members from the Host Committee will also support the Forum and Conference participants during their stay in Azerbaijan.
Registered Countries Algeria Angola Argentina Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Plurinational State of Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Chad Chile Scouts of China Colombia Comoros Democratic Republic of The Congo Costa Rica Côte d’Ivoire Croatia Curaçao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Dominica
Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Estonia Ethiopia Fiji Finland France Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Republic of Korea Kuwait Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg
Macao The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Madagascar Malaysia Maldives Malta Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Republic of Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Norway Oman Pakistan State of Palestine Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
San Marino Sao Tomé and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Singapore Slovakia Slovenia South Africa South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Tajikistan United Republic of Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States of America Uruguay Venezuela Yemen Zimbabwe
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Visa to Azerbaijan (status update)
E-Visas We hope that all delegations, from countries eligible for E-Visa, already got their visas via the online system. The vast majority of Delegation leaders, who are representing the biggest delegations, have already confirmed to us during Delegations Coordination Calls via Skype that this process is clear and easy, and E-Visas have been obtained by their participants without any issues. If your country is eligible for an E-Visa and you have still not completed the process, please consider that time is short and obtain it as soon as possible. If you experience any complications during this process and could not get your visa online, please, let us know by emailing to info@wsc2017.az. Visa upon arrival for those countries that are not eligible for E-Visa All requests for visa support letters stated by participants in the registration system have been carefully processed by the Host Committee after 15th June as it was announced earlier. Applicants’ data and passports copies listed by countries are now in the process in the State Migration Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Host Committee forwarding all visa confirmation letters for obtaining visas upon arrival at the Baku International Airport immediately after receiving them from the State Migration Service. If you applied for the visa support letter before June 15th as it was strongly requested, and your data were full and correct, you should receive your confirmation not later than July 25th. All participants with late registrations (after June 15th) and those whose data was incorrect in the booking system have been contacted by the Host Committee. Please help us to support you by responding quickly to requests for information and stay in contact with us concerning your visa support status via info@wsc2017.az. We remind you that you need to print out the visa confirmation letter before departure. You will need this letter in order to board the plane in the country of your origin (also during transfer). When you arrive at the Baku International Airport, please, proceed to the VISA desk and receive your visa. If you receive your confirmation letter, it means that your name is already in the Migration system and, normally, you will not experience any problem. The visa fee is USD 20 and is payable in cash on arrival. If you are arriving on the official arrival operational dates before the Forum or Conference, the Host Committee staff and volunteers will be in the airport, ready to help you upon arrival to solve any possible issues. If your date of arrival is different from the official ones, please, use the Host Committee`s hot-line number in case of any emergencies concerning arrivals only: +99470 200 22 75 (WhatsApp active)
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The 13th World Scout Youth Forum is coming! 5
The 13th World Scout Youth Forum (WSYF) will take place in Gabala from 7-10 August 2017. We now know it will be the biggest and the most diverse World Scout Youth Forum ever – with 325 people from more than 120 NSOs represented.
Registration and arrivals The registration of the WSYF closed on 3rd July 2017. If your NSO’s delegation to the Forum has registered, it is extremely important that the correct information concerning arrival and departure times are registered in the system so the Host Committee can meet them and arrange transfer to Gabala. Please, make sure that you have included only the final destination (Baku or Gabala airport) to the system and first flight back from Azerbaijan. You can access the bookings through the confirmation email received from the Cvent registration system. We kindly remind you that the official arrival date for the Forum is August 6th. If you are arriving on August 7th due to insurmountable circumstances, the Host Committee still will do their best to meet you at the airport and transfer you to the venue, but transfers on August 7th will be very limited (one shuttle from Baku to Gabala at the morning and one in the afternoon). Gabala is more than four hours driving from Baku so if participants do not arrive before the coaches depart it will be very difficult to get people in time for the Youth Forum. So, please, consider that you will miss significant part of the programme during of the first day of the Forum if you arrive late. We are not be able to accept any further bookings to attend the Forum because we have now reached the maximum capacity for the venue.
Check – in for the Forum Check-in for the Forum will be done upon arrival to the Qafqaz Resort Hotel in the lobby of the main building just before check-in to the hotel itself. Forum Documents Forum Documents in English and/or French are regularly uploaded on the Forum Documents page on scout.org and wsc2017.az. Therefore, we recommend encouraging your delegation to check these web pages regularly for all the latest updates about the Forum.
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Digital Engagement The WOSM WSYF landing page now features a platform for digital engagement, which enables WSYF participants as well as any young person who wishes to join in with the WSYF to participate remotely. The platform is a new tool produced to increase participation in the WSYF. Live streaming will take place on this platform during the event, and contents will be uploaded regularly to ensure young people can follow and contribute to some of the discussions. Resources have also been made available to help in the organisation of local or national youth forum and the reflection on youth engagement in your NSO. WOSM encourages all NSOs to promote it through all channels to reach not only Rovers and Young Adults, but also those from the younger age section. This is a great opportunity for all young people to learn about Youth Involvement.
Youth Advisors Elections The Youth Advisors’ Elections document (Forum Document No. 5) is now available in English and French. WOSM is now in communication with the candidates to prepare them for the elections process and to offer them good opportunities for engagement with the participants before the WSYF. The digital engagement platform will be the place for interactions between the candidates and the participants. The first interaction already done through videos that candidates filmed themselves to answer the three questions shortlisted by WSYF participants on social media. These videos have been available on the WSYF page since 12 July 2017.
Dialogue for Peace Training Course If members of your delegation are attending the Dialogue for Peace training course (4-5 August 2017) just before the WSYF, they have received an email containing the necessary information. If they did not receive this email, it either means that they did not register for the training or they are not a WSYF participants. Since we have already reached the maximum limit of the training course, we are unable to accept additional participants.
If you are attending the Dialogue for Peace Training it is ESSENTIAL to make sure that you have provided your flight details to the registration system in order to let the Host Committee meet you at the airport upon arrival and organise proper transfer to the venue.
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Online Training – Compass All WSYF participants must go through Compass, an online training course that will prepare them for the WSYF. Once they have completed the training, they will receive a passport, which they will be required to present in printed or digital format at the registration desk at the WSYF. Without this passport, they will not be able to complete their registration. The link to the online training course has been sent through email to all participants who have successfully registered. It is a very important step in preparing candidates to contribute actively at the WSYF.
360 Market Place On Wednesday, 9th August 2017 at 13:30hrs, WSYF delegations will have the opportunity to exhibit projects that are achieving social impact (especially in relation to Messengers of Peace, Scouts of the World Award, Environmental Education, community development and/or any other initiative at local or national levels). The aim of the event is to show how Scouts are making a positive impact in their societies and for the participants to learn from each other’s experiences.
Cultural Night Sharing your culture through costume, food, songs and etc., is one of the most enjoyable activities at World Scout Events. The WSYF agenda includes the Cultural Night (equivalent to an international evening) on Wednesday, 9 August 2017. Please ensure that your NSO’s delegation is prepared for this evening. Please also note that we will not have Regional coffee breaks, which had replaced the international evening for the last two WSYFs. To respect the diversity of the cultures present at the WSYF, alcoholic products should be kept to a minimum and consideration for religious-based food restrictions would be appreciated to ensure everyone can participate fully.
Open Forum On Thursday, 10 August 2017 at 15:45, delegations will have the opportunity to facilitate sessions on different topics that are relevant to the main topics of the Forum (Active Citizenship, Youth Involvement, Leadership and Sustainability). If there are more sessions than WSYF planning committee can accommodate, the participants will select the sessions they would like to have through a simple voting process. Please refer to the WSYF agenda to find out when delegations are required to submit the title(s) of their proposed session(s). 8
Emergency For the safety and security of the participants, we are enclosing an emergency form (link for the document here – only in English) that needs to be submitted during the onsite registration process. We encourage all participants to leave at home the Forum venue and contact information, which is available in most of the Forum communication channels.
Q&A on WSYF Preparations To help you finalise your preparations, the WSYF planning committee have prepared a Q&A type of document (Link for the document here – only in English), which will help you in the preparation process.
Communication Channels Several official and communication channels have been made available to WSYF participants: • WSYF landing page on scout.org (link) • Youth Wall (link on scout.org, link on Facebook and link on Twitter) • 41st World Scout Conference and 13th World Scout Youth Forum website and Facebook page We have also created the 13th World Scout Youth Forum group on Facebook to promote interaction between WSYF participants. To follow and contribute to the WSYF buzz on social media, please use the #ScoutForum hashtag. If you have any questions concerning the registration and agenda of the 13th World Scout Youth Forum, please do not hesitate to contact Hany Abdulmonem, Director of Youth Programme (WSB), at hany@scout.org. If you are a Forum participant and have any questions concerning visas, inland transfer, venue, accommodation, meals, evening and leisure activities, Interevent etc., please, refer to Nargiz Balakishiyeva, 13th WSYF Director (Host Committee), at nargiz.balakishiyeva@wsc2017.az
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41st World Scout Conference – less than a month to the start ‌ 10
Online registrations Registrations for the 41st WSC are still available. But please make sure that all data you provide is correct and updated in order to let the Host Committee provide you with the highest level of support. Please note that if you are registering after July 15th the Host Committee cannot guarantee you appropriate visa and accommodation support due to the time limitation. Arrivals and departures We strongly recommend to check all data provided to the registration system concerning flight details in order to let us, as a Host Committee to meet you upon arrival and to organize proper transportation to the Scout Family Hotels. If you have booked the accommodation on your own in other hotels or private apartments, you will be transferred to the assembly point of one of the nearest Scout Family Hotel. Please, let us know about the place where you will be staying, if you booked the accommodation on your own. We need to schedule transfer to the nearest assembly point accordingly. Please send the information to transport@wsc2017.az. We kindly remind you, that transfers by Host Committee will be organized ONLY during official dates of arrival/departures operations: for Dialogue for Peace training (August 2 and 3), Forum (August 6,7, 11) and Conference (August 12,13,14,18,19,20) respectfully. You can check also this data on the Bulletin #3 and on our website page. If you are arriving/departing on other dates, you will need to pay for transfer. You can pre-order a vehicle in advance via out Transport department transport@wsc2017.az, take a taxi or public bus to the nearest metro station at the Baku airport. We will have a branded welcome desk in Baku International Airport [GYD], operating from August 1st until August 20th for your convenience and support in organising transportation if you arriving or departing during and outside of the official dates. During the Conference working days, our Accommodation, Arrival & Departure Department accommodation@wsc2017.az and Transport Department transport@wsc2017.az will contact all Delegation leaders regarding the departure schedule from Baku. If there is a last minute change to your itinerary that you provided to the registration system, please make sure that you modify this information in the registration system and be sure to contact our Departments. From the end of the Closing Ceremony on the 18th of August and until the end of the August 20th, we are expecting almost 1400 participants to depart from Baku (except those who are staying for the Post Conference tours or on their own in Azerbaijan for longer). Considering the timeframes, this is a big number of people. Therefore, it is vitally important that we receive accurate information, in order to arrange and schedule the buses and meet the flights on time.
Accommodation The Host Committee of the 41st World Scout Conference has identified a number of hotels, which will be used for the Conference and called them “Scout Family Hotels�. The Association of Scouts of Azerbaijan have agreed special prices for NSO delegations during the Conference official dates and are offering a wide range of accommodation that can suit any taste and budget. We have signed contracts with 15 different hotels and arranged them in three clusters, by the distance from the main venues. 11
From the beginning of the registration process, all the information concerning hotels descriptions/prices/rooms types was available through the registration platform. But from June 15th bookings through the registration system were suspended due to the hotel booking deadline. In order to provide sufficient support to all our guests, the Host Committee has continued to help with bookings directly with delegations until July 15th. We have assumed that the majority of bookings was made through the online registration system or directly via the Host Committee as more than 1000 of the 1450 registered guests arriving for the Forum and Conference have booked accommodation in the Scout Family Hotels as of July 15th. After July 15th we are still supporting delegations with modifications and cancellations if the booking was made through cvent registration platform or via the Host Committee Accommodation Department directly. But since that day modification and cancellation fees will apply according to the relevant hotels’ policy [100% payment]. Please, contact us via accommodation@wsc2017.az as soon as possible if you still need support with accommodation issues. We remind you that all Scout Family Hotels will have an event helpdesk operating during Conference arrival, departure and working days from 07:00 – 23:00 and shuttles buses from the assembly points near Scout Family Hotels to the Conference venue and back, operating daily during August 13th – August 18th.
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Check-in at the main Conference venue – Baku Congress Centre Check in to the Conference will be carried out by delegations and NOT by individuals. Please do not attend the registration desk as an individual or we will not be able to help you.
We ask that Delegation Leaders agree who will attend the registration desk in the Baku Congress Centre to receive the material for their whole delegation. Each delegation will receive the Conference ID badges and participant kits for their members. You will receive the Conference documents in this kit, event scarf and t-shirt, participant’s handbook and some other useful items and welcome souvenirs from the Host Committee. You will need to bear this in mind when deciding how many people to send to the registration area. Please note, that delegation leaders must finalise all open financial issues with the World Scout Bureau and the Host Committee staff before the check-in process of their delegation can be completed. After clearing up your data and receiving the Conference ID badge, you may enter the main venue for the following Conference working days. If you lose your Conference ID badge, you can get a replacement at the Registration desk in the venue, by presenting your passport or other ID with photo. We strongly encourage your delegation to check-in as soon as possible upon your arrival to Baku to avoid long queues and waiting at the Conference opening day.
Venue registration desk working schedule: For Delegation leaders - check-in and financial issues: August 11 from 14:00 to 18:00 (Baku time) August 12 from 09:00 to 18:00 August 13 from 09:00 to 20:00 August 14 from 08:00 to 18:00 For all participants support during conference (lost ID badges, departures, other issues) August 14 - 19 from 08:00 to 18:00
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Programme Please, refer to the Programme page to check updates in the Conference provisional agenda.
41st World Scout Conference - Azerbaijan 2017 Provisional agenda July 2017
Sun 13 Aug
Mon 14 Aug
Early AM
Tue 15 Aug
Wed 16 Aug
Thu 17 Aug
Meditation
Meditation
Meditation
23rd WSJ (Japan 2015) report
Presentations by candidates to host the 25th World Scout Jamboree (2023)
Welcoming new WOSM Member
Financial report
Joint Report from WOSMWAGGGS
Regional meetings Breakout sessions on Draft Resolutions, Constitutional Amendments and other key topics
Partnerships (plenary session)
15th WSM (Iceland 2017) - report Kandersteg International Scout Centre - update 2nd WSEC (Kandersteg 2017) report
Conference Resolutions (plenary voting session)
Fri 18 Aug Meditation
Honours and Awards (including Centenary Diplomas)
16th WSM (Ireland 2021) - progress report Presentations by candidates to host the 42nd WSC and 14th WSYF (2020)
Coffee break
Late AM World Scout Foundation report
Regional meetings (cont.)
Breakout sessions on Draft Resolutions, Constitutional Amendments and other key topics (cont.)
Messengers of Peace - introduction
Vote on invitations to host the 42nd WSC and 14th WSYF(2020) Conference Resolutions (plenary voting session cont.)
24th WSJ (North America 2019) progress update report + Announcement of 42nd WSC and 14th WSYF host
Messengers of Peace - project Lunch
Early PM
Progress report on Strategy for Scouting-Vision 2023 Opening session Appointment of Tellers & Resolutions Committee Report from WSC Chairperson & Secretary General WOSM on Triennium 2014-2017
Breakout sessions on draft objectives for the WOSM Triennial Plan 2017-2020
Proposals for Constitutional Amendments (plenary voting session)
Conference resolutions (plenary voting session cont.) Announcement of the new Chairperson and Vice-Chairpersons of the WSC
NSO showcases (cont.) + Conference evaluation (in focus groups)
Vote on deferred membership decision (Draft Resolution 2017-B) Coffee Break
Late PM
Welcoming new WOSM members 13th World Scout Youth Forum (Azerbaijan, 2017)-report
"Welcome the World" reception
Vote on invitations to host the 25th World Scout Jamboree (2023) Presentation by candidates for election to World Scout Committee 2017-2020
Vote - Election of the World Scout Committee 2017-2020
World Scouting Showcase (in breakout sessions)
JOTA-JOTI report
Closing session
Breakout Sessions on: * Scouting Development * Communications and Strategic Engagements * Organisational Development * Finance
Outgoing WSC Chairperson Farewell address NSO Growth Recognition & Commitments, with Closing Remarks from SG Investiture of new WSC members
Announcement of WSJ vote and WSC elected candidates
Meet the WSC Candidates Scouts` Own
New WSC Chairperson Address
Free time Evening
Opening of the Scout photo exhibition in the Baku downtown *Dinner not provided*
Opening ceremony
International evening
Azerbaijani evening
Dinner as part of opening ceremony
Dinner as part of international evening
Dinner as part of Azerbaijani evening
Free evening
Closing ceremony
*Dinner not provided*
Dinner as part of closing ceremony
Documents Please, refer to the Documents page to check all updates concerning Conference documents.
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Conference dress code and security check 1. August 14th, Opening day – uniform (passport and ID badge are ESSENTIAL for the security check) 2. August 15th , International evening – national dress, representing your country/region is welcome or smart casual 3. August 16th , Azerbaijani evening – smart casual 4. August 18th , Closing day – uniform or official dress 5. During working day and for other evenings – any scout element is warmly welcomed Passport and ID badge are required during the security check for attending the Conference venue at the first day of the Conference. You will be required to show your ID bage each time you enter the building.
Accompanying Persons Programme – bus schedule Assembly point for daily APProgramme– Conference venue – Baku Congress Centre. All accompanying persons, registered in the system and willing to attend the daily Accompanying Persons Programme, are required to use shuttle buses with other participants going from their Scout Family Hotels to the venue every morning. If some of them are stayed in other hotels, different from the Scout Family Hotels, they need to get to the nearest Scout Family Hotel and take shuttle or get to the venue by themselves. Shuttles for APP tours will be leaving the venue (bus load zone close to the main entrance) at 09:00 every morning and will bring guests back directly to the Scout Family Hotels in the evenings.
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Conference ceremonies and side events Opening Ceremony – August 14 The grand Opening Ceremony will take place in the evening on Monday, 14th August 2017, followed by a dinner (standing banquet). We kindly ask all delegates, observers, guests and accompanying persons’ programme attendees to arrange their arrival to the Conference venue – Baku Congress Centre – before 18:30 on that day (keep in mind the time needed for security check at the entrance). The Opening Ceremony is scheduled from 19:00 to 21:00 (including dinner). Shuttles to the venue will be provided from the assembly points near the Scout Family Hotels starting 17:30 – 18:30 - every 15 mins. Same from the venue on the way back to the Scout Family Hotels, shuttles will be provided starting from 20:00 to 22:00 and will run every 15 mins. The Opening Ceremony represents the official opening of the 41st WSC and will be held as a formal reception under the theme: "Together for Positive change", including a short keynote speech from a high level state representative. The opening event will showcase the importance of Scouting as an international youth movement to our key stakeholders in the whole world. For this event, we kindly ask all delegations to bring and donate to the Association of Scouts of Azerbaijan one national Scout scarf. The scarf can be decorated with your wishes and vision in the framework of Conference main theme: “Together for positive change”. We only ask that the ornamented scarves are still recognisable as your national scarves. After the Opening Ceremony, we will decorate the venue with scarves from the whole world for the entire time of the Conference. All scarves will remain in the Scout museum of the Association of the Scouts of Azerbaijan as a valuable and memorable gift from the 13th World Scout Youth Forum & 41st World Scout Conference and remind us of first time world level Scout events were hosted in Azerbaijan.
Please, don’t forget to bring your passport and ID badge, as they are absolutely required during the security check for attending Conference venue before Opening Ceremony. You will be refused entry to the Conference Venue if you do not have a passport with you or if your name on your Conference ID does not match with your name in your passport.
International Evening – August 15 It has become a very popular tradition not only for conferences, but also for all international and world Scout events to enjoy the unique spirit and atmosphere of an international evening, where everybody is host and guest at the same time. More than offering an insight to the culture of your own home country, you will also be able to mingle with the bustling crowd and enjoy the presentations from the other countries. You will also have the opportunity to sample traditional food and drinks from the whole globe. The International Evening will take place on Tuesday, 15th August 2017, starting at 19:00. 16
Shuttles to the venue will be provided from the assembly points near the Scout Family Hotels starting 17:30 – 18:30 and run every 15 mins. Same from the venue on the way back to the Scout Family Hotels, shuttles will be provided starting from 20:00 to 22:00 every 15 mins. The evening will take place in the open air on the grass area just behind the main venue – Baku Congress Centre. Each delegation is kindly requested to prepare their country’s presentations. As hosts, we will provide tables, two chairs and electricity. If you need to order something extra for your country presentation during the International Evening, please write to venue@wsc2017.az (not later than August 1st). There will be an equipped stage you're your delegation will have the possibility to perform your national dances, songs, games etc. during the international evening. If you are going to use the stage, please, email in advance, but not later than on August 5th, to sideevents@wsc2017.az. Each presentation on the stage should last no longer than 5 minutes.
Azerbaijani evening – August 16 To distract you from everyday worries and enable you to forget for a couple of hours about the official routine of the Conference we would like to invite you to get immersed in the enchanting magic of Azerbaijani culture and traditions though magnificent national dances, folk songs and games. You will get a chance to explore the mystery of folk crafts and get closer to the fascinating secrets of the past of our ancient country and the splendid achievements of the present technologies in art and daily life.
All this and more awaits you on the third evening of the Conference, on August 16th, at the Azerbaijani evening. We still do not tell you where and what you will see, it's a surprise, just leave all the working papers and gadgets in the hotel, dress yourself comfortably, get down at the appointed time to the buses at the assembly points and be ready for a fairy evening that will forever leave indelible memories of this amazing country and its inhabitants in your memory and heart. 17
Buses will be provided to the hotels in order to be at place before 18:45 and back to the assembly points at the Scout Family Hotels starting from the 21:00 to 22:00. Please check the timetable of the Buses at the Info Desk in your Scout Family Hotel. Closing ceremony – August 18 The official closing ceremony will start from 19:00 on August 18th at a modern and marvelous place, famous not only in Baku, but among foreign guests and tourists of Azerbaijan - Buta palace. Official closing speeches will be followed by dinner and a social entertainment programme. Buses will be provided to the Buta Palace in order to be there before 18:45 and back to the assembly points at the Scout Family Hotels starting from the 21:00 to 22:00. Please check the timetable of the Buses at the Info Desk in your Scout Family Hotel. Side events – late evening leisure program For all those who have heard a lot about great Baku’s night party life and passionately want to experience it by themselves, the Host Committee will provide such opportunities. Three evenings ahead, 15th, 16th and 17th of August, three famous Baku night clubs from the list of the most popular and modern ones, will host only our guests who arrived for the 13th WSYF and 41st WSC to Azerbaijan. The parties will go on from 22:00 and until the force remains with us. The names/addresses of clubs and other details will be provided in the Conference booklet.
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Scout photo exhibition in Baku downtown In order to promote World Scouting among inhabitants and foreign visitors in the hosting country - Azerbaijan, to share valuable memories between scout participants arriving in Baku from all over the World, the Host Committee is organizing open air scout photo exhibition in the Baku downtown. The photo exhibition will be held within the framework of the 41st World Scout Conference, offering an insight into the variety of inspiring moments of scouting activities. The exhibition will be on display just in the middle of the most popular pedestrian walking place - famous and vibrant public Fountains Square (Ahmad Javad/Rafibayli str.), from 10 - 20 August 2017, official opening on Sunday, August 13. All the participating National Scout Organisations are kindly asked to present their personalized scout photos. Photos should have been taken during special Scout Events. The photos, majorly reflecting creative, cheerful and certain team messages with the portrayal of scouting activities within the Conference theme “Together for positive change� will be preferred to be exhibited in the city fair, expected to be visited by all Conference participants, as well as, residents and tourists of Baku. Participants are asked to send photos in .jpg format extension, high-resolution [min.3648 x 2554 px] with the short description [country name, NSO name, photographer name, event title, date, the picture title]. Please, send your pictures to the email address: photo@wsc2017.az before August 1st, 2017. Let's share our inspiring stories bringing scouts from the whole world together for positive change! 19
Volunteers support 20
The year 2017 will be the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Association of Scouts of Azerbaijan as an independent National Scout Organization as well as for the establishment of the Eurasia Scout Region. The opportunity to combine these celebrations with hosting two World Events will be a great milestone in the history of our organisation and a clear signal to the Scouting world that young NSOs are capable and welcome to host important World Scout Events. In addition to the Host and Organising committee members, professional staff and contractors, we are expecting around 300 volunteers in our team. In order to strength our capacities and following the Scout tradition, we have been inviting international volunteers – experienced Scouts from different Scout regions – to provide their valuable input to the success of the Youth Forum and Conference. The Host Committee has finished recruitment of the international volunteers and now is on the final stage of selection of local volunteers. More than 400 applications of very experienced and dedicated Scouts from more than 100 countries have submitted their applications to the host committee, which were reviewed in three stages. The candidates who passed the first check and met requirements were shortlisted. The volunteers were then formally confirmed by their respective NSO, and finally, Skype interviews were conducted during the third stage of selection. Besides the Scout experience and general competencies required for successful candidates, the host committee prioritised the equal representation of international volunteers from all six Scout regions, respecting different ages, gender balance, and various professional backgrounds. And we are happy to announce that the confirmation process of international volunteers attendance for the 41st WSC and 13th WSYF has been finalised. All international volunteers are expecting to arrive in Azerbaijan around July 25th. Our fellow Scout friends will be trained in advance and further assigned for shifts in designated venues and events. Arrivals\Departures information desk (assisting at the airport) Hotel informational desk (support participants in the hotels) Transport assistance (support participants on the way to the hotels and back) Registration desk (assisting with Forum/Conference attendee registrations/program related questions in the venues) Forum/Conference venue support (assisting during the event) Language Assistance (assisting with sharing of information/answering questions of non-English speaking delegates at different locations) IT & Communication support (professional support to participants during the events) Health&Safety (control the entrance and the area where the event will be held) Other required tasks
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Also we received more than 1000 applications from local Azerbaijani youth who are passionately willing to contribute to the success of the upcoming events in Azerbaijan. Almost 300 of them were already selected and confirmed for the host team. Since the beginning of July the Host Committee have been conducting a set of general training sessions for Azerbaijani volunteers which covered the guides on a code of conduct, personal attitude and behavior in multicultural environment respecting all differences, and other tasks to be carried out during the conference. Event specific training that will provide to the volunteers detailed information about the events and programs, followed by role specific and venue specific trainings have been started in each Department since July 10th and will last to the beginning of August.
International Volunteers will participate in the same training programme upon arrival to Baku, additionally attending an integration training on Azerbaijani culture and traditions.
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Useful tips while you are packing to Azerbaijan Money Official currency of Azerbaijan is manat (AZN). 1 manat = 100 qapik. Currency rates, banks and exchange offices Approximate rate: USD 1= 1.71 AZN, Euro 1 =1.9 AZN. It’s best to bring USD or EUR cash or a MasterCard/Visa credit card for payments. ATMs are widely available in Baku city Centre. Outside Baku it is better to have local cash ready. Money exchange is not a problem and can be done in any Bank or some big Hotels. Travelers’ cheques are hard to cash. If you are traveling directly to Gabala, coming at night or during weekend it is better to exchange money at the airport upon arrival. Bank offices are easily found both in Baku and many other big cities, as well as in the airports and some hotels that have currency exchange services. Most of the banks across the country are closed at 17:30, some work 24 hours. It may be harder to exchange foreign currency in smaller cities. Banks in Baku work from 09.00 or 09.30 to 17.30, though some of them are open until late evening. Payment by credit card is possible only in big supermarkets of Baku, banks and international hotels as well as other leisure services points; they are not in use in provincial cities. Food prices Cheap local meals are widely available (doner kebab 3-5 AZN) standard lunch and dinner prices start from 5 AZN and goes up to 80 AZN. Drink prices Bottled water from 25-70 cents per half-liter. Draft beer from 1,5 AZN, bottled lager from 2-3 AZN (Khirdalan) at the store, up to 7 AZN in the pubs. Transport prices Taxi 5-15 AZN anywhere within central Baku City. Metro is cheap and the best to get around Baku (flat fee of 0,20 AZN per ride), buses cost as Metro (0.20-0,25 AZN per ride). Driving An International license is advised. Major international car hire chains (Avis, Hertz, etc) are available. Car hire/4WD can be arranged based on your home license. Time zone GMT+4. Religion Islam is the main religion in Azerbaijan. Shia majority, however there is no segregation between shia and sunni in Azerbaijan. Christian Orthodox and Judaism also have very ancient history in Azerbaijan. The country is quite secular and very respectful to all religions.
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Language Azerbaijani (Azeri) is the only official language in Azerbaijan and belongs to the Turkic group of languages, Russian is also spoken widely in Baku and among older folks across the country, Turkish is useful, English is understood by very few outside Baku. Telephone codes The international code for Azerbaijan is 994, then 12 for local phones Baku, 50 (Azercell), 55 (Bakcell) or 70 and 77 (Nar) for mobiles. You can buy local mobile sim-card with your passport. Health factors International travel medical insurance is required in case you may need medical assistance. Also the Host Committee Health & Safety Department will provide all necessary first aid assistance and relevant professional support if needed at designated areas during both events. Safety Generally Baku is a very safe and hospitable city. Violence and crime is minimal. The downtown, pedestrian boulevar on the sea shore and all central part of Baku is brightly lit during the whole night. There are a lot of tourists and local people walking in the city center, boulevards and parks during the whole night up to the early morning in the summer time. Cafes and restaurants with open terraces are also open until late at night and are absolutely safe. Shopping Most international goods are available in Baku, though can be quite expensive. Outside the capital choice is very limited. Electricity Voltage The electricity supply in Azerbaijan is 220V and a 2ÂŹpin Type A plug should be used. You will need to have appropriate power supply devices and an international power adapter, if necessary. Weather forecast in Azerbaijan in August Gabala
Baku
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Contacts and resourses
Organizing Committee
Host Committee
World Scout Bureau Global Support Centre, Kuala Lumpur World Organization of the Scout Movement Suite 3, Level 17, Menara Sentral Vista 150 Jalan Sultan Abdul Samad Brickfields, 50470 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
41st World Scout Conference & 13th World Scout Youth Forum Office Association of Scouts of Azerbaijan Ismayil bek Qutqahinli street 3 AZ1000, Baku, Azerbaijan
Tel: +60 (3) 2276 9000 Email: conference2017@scout.org
WOSM webpage www.scout.org 13 th WSYF & 41 st WSC webpage www.wsc2017.az
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Tel: +994 77 451 71 11 Email: info@wsc2017.az Open days: Monday - Saturday Open hours: 09:00 – 21:00 GMT+4
twitter.com/Azerbaijan2017 www.facebook.com/wsc2017 instagram.com/41wsc_13wsyf_azerbaijan_2017