European leaders from more than 30 national JCI Organizations gathered for a three-day long European Presidents Meeting (EPM) in the Moldovan capital of Chişinău at the beginning of February. The goal of the meeting was to align their plans on how to make a change for the better for young people all over Europe.

JCI Malta National President Markus Behmann and Deputy President Nicole Borg attended the EPM to exchange knowledge on how to give young European professionals and entrepreneurs the opportunity to develop themselves as individuals and enhance their leadership skills by forming part of an international network.

The Maltese delegation left a lasting impression with other delegates as National President Markus Behmann presented the JCI Digital Platform, a fully-fledged online system that can be used by all other national organisations or even other NGOs, which includes notable features such as a website with digital membership system, online courses, eCommerce capabilities, and easy usability for non-tech users. The platform was well received with more than ten international delegations showing interest in making use of the platform for their countries.

During the first General Assembly of 2020, the JCI National Presidents created task-forces to develop the existing Step Up For Europe campaign and to take advantage of the network for business opportunities.

JCI focuses on four areas of opportunities for its members: Personal Development, International Collaboration, Business Opportunities, and Community Development. For the alignment of the JCI Europe forces, focus was put on the topics of marketing strategy, highlighting of extraordinary engagement through awards, integration of the alumni, corporate partnership extension, as well as growth and development activities.

Following the motto of 2020 JCI President Itai Manyere, #BridgeTheGap, events like the JCI European Presidents Meeting aim to bridge both the knowledge gap and the social gap with the approximately 100 participants raising money during the festive gala evening to support Moldovan families and the education of their children.

The next meeting of the European National Presidents will be during the JCI European Conference in Dublin, Ireland from 27th-30th May. The programme of the European Conference includes keynotes, workshops and training courses related to the theme “Engagement, Employment, Empowerment”. More information about the conference can be found on https://www.jci.org.mt/shop/events/european-conference