Global Issues: Youth

Introduction

The term "youth age group" has no broadly accepted international definition. However, the United Nations defines "youth" for statistical purposes as anyone between the ages of 15 and 24, without regard to any other classifications provided by Member States. In its resolution 36/28 of 1981, the General Assembly adopted this term, which emerged in the framework of planning for the International Youth Year (1985). This concept serves as the foundation for all UN data on youth, as shown by the annual yearbooks containing statistics on demographics, education, employment, and health that are released by the UN system.

According to this statistically based definition of youth, those under the age of 14 are regarded as children. However, it is noteworthy that "children" are defined as those under the age of 18 in Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Since there was no analogous document on the rights of youth at the time, it was intended that the Convention would offer protection and rights to the broadest age group conceivable.

Many nations also set a limit on youth in terms of the 'age of majority,' or the age at which a person is treated equally before the law. In many nations, this age is often 18; hence, once a person reaches this age, they are regarded as adults. Nevertheless, based on specific sociological, institutional, economic, and political considerations, different countries have different operational definitions and nuanced uses of the term "youth."

State of the World’s Youth

Today, 1.2 billion young people, or 16% of the world's population, are between the ages of 15 and 24. According to projections, there will be over 1.3 billion young people on the planet by 2030, when the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda are expected to be completed.

The need to address the multifaceted issues faced by young people (such as access to education, health, employment, and gender equality) has grown more urgent than ever as youth are increasingly demanding more just, equitable, and progressive chances and solutions in their society.

When given the information and opportunities they require to succeed, youth may be a powerful force for growth. Youth in particular require access to a job market that can accept them into the labor force and the education and skills necessary to participate in a productive economy.

The World Programme of Action for Youth serves as the blueprint for the United Nations' youth agenda. The Programme of Action includes recommendations for action in each of the fifteen priority areas for youth. It was adopted by the General Assembly in 1995 and offers a framework for international cooperation and national initiatives to enhance the lives of young people around the world. Study up on the Programme of Action.

Youth at the UN: A History

The imagination, ideals, and enthusiasm of young people are essential for the continued growth of the societies in which they reside, according to the United Nations. When they signed the Declaration on the Promotion of the Ideals of Peace, Mutual Respect, and Understanding amongst Peoples in 1965, Member States of the United Nations acknowledged this.

Twenty years later, the International Youth Year: Participation, Development, and Peace was recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 1985. Youth play a significant role in society, and the celebration of the Year highlighted this, as well as the potential of young people to contribute to growth.

The United Nations redoubled its dedication to promoting youth in 1995, the International Youth Year's tenth anniversary. It created a global plan known as the World Programme of Action for Youth to the Year 2000 and Beyond, which focused attention on and redirected the response of the global community to the issues that youth would face in the new millennium.

The General Assembly agreed with the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth's request that the 12th of August be recognized as International Youth Day in its resolution 54/120 from December 1999. The conference took place in Lisbon from August 8–12, 1998. Worldwide Youth Day, which has a new focus each year, celebrates the potential of young as partners in the contemporary global society. It also aids in bringing youth issues to the attention of the international community.

The United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 64/134 in December 2009 designating the year beginning on 12 August 2010 as the International Year of Youth to mark the 25th anniversary of the inaugural International Youth Year. The Assembly urged governments, civil society, people, and groups to support the Year's local, national, and international commemorative activities.

2015 saw the unanimous adoption of Security Council resolution 2250, which urged States to think about creating systems that would let young people actively contribute as peacemakers to deter violence and foster world peace. This resolution clearly places youth as significant partners in global efforts to promote peace and oppose extremism. It is the first Security Council resolution entirely devoted to the critical and positive role of young people in advancing international peace and security.

In its resolution 2419 from 2018, the Council emphasized the necessity of properly implementing resolution 2250 and urged all pertinent parties to think about measures to improve the representation of youth in peace negotiations and peace agreements' implementation.

Youth and the The Sustainable Development Goals

Assuring that "no one will be left behind" is a key tenant of the 2030 Agenda. All countries, all people of all ages, and all societies are intended for the Sustainable Development Goals. Because the 2030 Agenda is global in scope, youth must be taken into account in all Goals and goals. In four areas—youth employment, teenage girls, education, and sports for peace—youth are especially emphasized. Young people are also seen as change agents, charged with realizing their own potential and making the world a better place for coming generations.

The accomplishment of targets in the areas of education and employment are highlighted by the most recent World Youth Report as being essential to overall youth development, even if all of the Sustainable Growth Goals are crucial for youth development.

Sustainable Development Goal 4

Every young person has the fundamental right to an education. Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Agenda asks for the promotion of opportunities for all people to learn throughout their lives. In order to do this, there must be a coordinated effort to guarantee that both young men and women have access to quality, affordable, and free training opportunities. According to the most recent data, there are significant global inequalities in education, making universal secondary education a flimsy ambition for many, particularly those in impoverished countries.

To successfully transition into the workforce and find decent work, access to inclusive and equitable quality education is crucial. It is also necessary for achieving numerous Sustainable Development Goals. Affordable technical, vocational, and postsecondary education that equips young people with useful skills for work and business should be provided in addition to high-quality basic and secondary education.

Sustainable Development Goal 8

The need for decent work is contextualized by Sustainable Development Goal 8. The problems of underemployment, unemployment, and low work quality have proven to be persistent and overwhelming for young people. The global youth unemployment rate was 13% in 2017. Youth unemployment is three times as likely to affect young people as it is older people. Many young individuals labor in low-paying, unstable, or unofficial jobs. For vulnerable and marginalized adolescents, such as young women, those living in humanitarian circumstances, youth with disabilities, migratory youth, and lesbian, homosexual, bisexual, and transgender youth, the obstacles of finding and keeping decent job are much more serious and complex.

The 2030 Agenda's design and implementation by youth

The 2030 Agenda's "torchbearers" might be said to be young people because they are integral to its success not just as recipients of its actions and policies but also as partners and participants in their execution. In fact, young people played key roles in the creation of the 2030 Agenda and are still actively involved in the systems and procedures that enable its execution, monitoring, and evaluation.

The ratification of the 2030 Agenda marked the completion of a protracted three-year process that involved Member States, civil society, especially youth organizations, in the creation of precise goals and targets.

World peace and sustainable development are largely fueled by the well-being, involvement, and empowerment of young people. In order to address the development challenges facing youth (such as unemployment, political exclusion, marginalization, problematic access to education and health, etc.) and recognize the positive role of youth as partners in promoting development and sustaining peace, the 2030 Agenda requires strong and inclusive partnerships between young people and all stakeholders.

The 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the Goals have been advanced by youth-led initiatives and activities. Youth are involved in a variety of activities, such as raising awareness, gathering and using data, participating in local and national campaigns, monitoring and holding others accountable, and reporting on progress in the shadows.

The UN is ideally situated to serve as a source of safety and assistance for youth.

The United Nations is ideally situated to operate as a source of safety and support for young people and to offer a platform through which their needs can be met, their voices can be amplified, and their engagement can be enhanced because of its global convening role.

The Department of Economic and Social Affairs' (DESA) UN Programme on Youth, which acts as the UN's focal point for youth issues, raises awareness of the state of young people around the world, advocates for their rights and aspirations, and works to increase young people's participation in decision-making as a means of promoting peace and development. Governments frequently engage young people in their formal delegations to the General Assembly and ECOSOC system, where DESA oversees the involvement of youth delegates.

In January 2013 and September 2016, the Secretary-General designated his Youth Envoy and a Special Envoy on Youth Unemployment, respectively. The youth envoys collaborate to improve young people's access to the UN.

The World Youth Report, a biannual publication that highlights important topics of youth development, is created by DESA.

The ECOSOC Youth Forum is an annual gathering that gives young people a forum to discuss their needs and worries informally with other stakeholders, particularly Member States, and to look at methods to support youth development at all levels. The Forum serves as the most formalized forum for young people to participate in UN discussions and is a crucial tool for building youth support for the 2030 Agenda.

The UN System Youth and

In light of the confluence of events during the Arab spring and in anticipation of the Rio+20 conference, the United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB) reviewed youth and sustainable development in 2012. Executive Heads discussed the different facets of youth-related programmatic challenges, such as youth employment, political inclusion, health, and education. The Board stressed the significance of improved collaboration within the UN system to promote youth development.

The Inter-Agency Network on Youth and Development (IANYD) was then coordinated by UN-DESA and UN-HABITAT as they created the System-wide Action Plan on Youth (Youth-SWAP). Youth-SWAP, which the CEB endorsed in April 2013, focuses on collaborative UN system action on topics such as employment and entrepreneurship, political inclusion, civic participation and rights protection, education (including sexuality education), and health.

The Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth, a UN system-wide initiative to promote youth employment globally, received CEB support in November 2015.