Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani inaugurated the Kurdistan Foundation’s Youth Hub in Erbil on June 10, 2026.
The facility is described as the largest multi-functional youth centre of its kind globally, providing young people with access to educational, cultural and professional development resources under one roof. The hub includes dedicated spaces for workshops, conferences, innovation labs and community programmes, alongside an art gallery and library intended to support academic research and creative engagement among the region’s youth.
The centre represents a significant step in the Kurdistan’s broader push to develop its human capital and reduce youth unemployment, two of the most pressing economic challenges facing the region. JobsKRD, one of the foundation’s platforms operating under the hub, created 2,000 jobs last year while VolunteerKRD engaged over 9,000 volunteers across 500 initiatives and trained 1,200 young people.
The foundation has set ambitious targets for the coming year, aiming to expand its volunteering network to 25,000 members, create 20,000 job opportunities and support hundreds of community projects across Kurdistan.
Beyond economic development the hub will host cultural activities and civic programmes designed to promote engagement and dialogue among youth across Kurdistan, positioning Erbil as a centre for innovation and enterprise in the wider Middle East.
