Policy that encourage democratic youth participation as such does not have a long tradition in the Czech Republic, mainly due to the historical experience during the communist regime, which did not allow for free expression of opinion. This is not only reflected in generally low participation in children and youth organisations, but also in political participation of the adult population (see Mansfeldová,Kroupa, 2005). However, there has been a gradual improvement since 1989, when citizens became more aware of their rights and the need to engage in democratic processes.

Hence, youth participation has been one of the highest priorities of the previous and current Czech Youth Strategies. The new Youth Strategy 2025-2030 highlights youth participation as one of the main goals and was itself developed in a very participatory approach, including through a dedicated Youth Panel.

There is an ongoing discussion about supporting more participation and participatory mechanisms for the general public and civil society. Even some political parties are pledging to introduce the Law on Referendum and other mechanisms to enhance citizen participation. One of the examples that influenced the institutional order of the Czech Republic was the introduction of direct elections of the President in 2013 and in January 2018 and 2023, when the second and third direct presidential elections were held. The presidential elections in 2023 also showed a higher interest from Czech young people in comparison to the Parliamentary elections.

The first wider systemic national initiative has been the establishment of the National Working Group for the Structured Dialogue with Youth in January 2014: an adaptation of the Structured Dialogue from European to a national level. Structured Dialogue with Youth thereby became a national process and initiative to support young people in their civic, public and political participation at all levels of public governance, including the introduction of the UN Youth Delegate programme for Czech Youth.

Within the Youth work field, there have also been attempts to introduce e-participation tools. However, because of the limited scope, they were largely ineffective.

The narrative of youth participation changed in the last decade from a more educational to a more proactive approach to young people and their empowerment in having an influence on actual political decision-making at all levels.

Though there is no state-initiated research on youth participation, several NGOs, including youth organisations, are active in this field and are creating pressure on the state to advance its activity in this field.