text: many youth groups and leagues have played a signigicant ro1e, particularly in educational and cultural aclivities. In the area of econonic activities, decentralized management initiatives have also encouraged greater participation. 15. In many developing counCries, the struggle against. poverty and the building ofa viable economy, often waged against the backdrop of another struggle for natlonalunity and cohesion, makes participation a necessity, but one that is particularlydifficult to achieve. For people wbose major concern is survival. participation, developmene and peace, unless they mean immediate and tangible benefits, are just three more abstractions. In fact. the lower people are in the social hierarchy,the less ar.e they 1ike1y to participate in activities of already existing organizedgroupst instead they rel-y upon alternative forms of social association. and young people play a particularly active role here. T}rere ls much evidence of this amongthe urbao poor and marginalized groups in sone developing countries. g/ Oneproblem for Governments has been to establish channels of communication with suchgroups, monitor their self-help activities and thus involve them in theparticipatory and deveLopmental processes. The naElonal co-ordi.nating committees created for the International youth year have, in many countrles, done much ln thisdirecti.on. On the other hand, governmental agencie3, in spite of concertedefforts, have sometimes encountered difficulties In deallng irith this kind of community partsicipation, both in terms of organizational constraints and budgetarylimltatlons. However, the leadership provided by the year. specific programrnes forit, and the national co-ordinating conmittees, could go a long way torrardsioproving this si tua tion. 16. The universal desire for peace is not aleays puC into praceice. Therelatlonship between disarmament and development is, of course, an extremely complex one. However, nilitary spending and social programmes are sometimes inA/4o/7Ot Engli sh Page 7
analysis: The text primarily focuses on the role of youth groups and decentralized management initiatives in promoting economic development, cultural activities, and social cohesion in developing countries. It also touches on the challenges of establishing channels of communication between governments and marginalized groups, as well as the relationship between disarmament and development. The text does not mention natural resources, agriculture, forestry, fishing, industry, transport, communication, international trade, health, or science and technology.