The Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation and the NGO LEAD, organized for the second time the event "The Loudest!- NajGLASni!", which took place from 09.-11.05.2023. Six of the most committed student representatives in the country come together for this purpose. As part of an internal competition, the groups of students were asked to present their school council. The winning group was chosen on the last day. This competition is accompanied by a varied programme.

An extensive tour of the Parliament marked the beginning of the time together. The participants heard many interesting stories that took place in the historic premises. In the hall where the constitution was once signed, Daniel Braun, head of the Macedonian office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, addressed welcoming words to the young participants. This was followed by opening remarks from Monika Zajkova, Safije Sadiki and Marija Petrushevska, 3 members of Parliament, and from Ivan Jovanov, executive director of LEAD. The high students used the opportunity to discuss relevant youth topics with the members of the Parliament and showed interest in future communication and cooperation.  

Afterwards, all participants went to the conference site in Veles. There they were received by Ilija Stankovski, the LEAD program manager, and Sandra Koljackova, the KAS program manager. After another lecture by last year's winner Anastasija Sasa Tofoska, who was available as a mentor for the students this year, the students had time to get to know each other. The tasks and challenges of student councils were explored in interesting discussions..

Since each group was to present the work and how its school council functions on a every day basis Thursday was mainly used to prepare this presentation. Other program items of the day provided orientation and inspiration. Ivan Jovanov and Ilija Stankovski gave a lecture on planning and implementing a campaign. All groups worked late into the night and worked hard on the elaboration.

On the following day, the focus was on the presentations. After a short round of introductions by the jury, the presentations began. Each presentation had a maximum duration of 5 minutes, followed by a 10-minute question and answer session in which the judges asked questions and the presenting panel answered. After extensive deliberation, the jury chose the student council of the SOU high school "Josip Broz Tito" from Bitola as the winning group. This year’s winner will have the opportunity with the support of KAS and LEAD to organize till the end of 2023 an event for their school which wil strengthen the direct democratic process in the school and give an even stronger voice to the students.

In conclusion, it can be stated that the event "The Loudest!" gave the students valuable experience and knowledge and thus made an important contribution to strengthening democracy and European values. By giving young people the opportunity to raise their voice and develop ideas at an early stage, they are encouraged to actively participate in social processes and take on responsibility. The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and LEAD will continue to make a joint contribution in the future to educate a young generation of committed and responsible citizens who are firmly connected to the basic values of our society.