Youth Urge UN to Listen, Invest and Partner for Future

A group of teenagers gather to play football in San Cristobal, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala.

With nearly half the global population under 30, the UN continues to emphasise the indispensable role of young people in decision-making towards achieving a just, equitable, and sustainable future for all.

“Youth participation is not just about bringing young people to meetings,” General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock said on Thursday.

“It’s about truly integrating their lived experience and expertise to shape policy outcomes.”

Ms Baerbock was speaking at an event commemorating the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth.

The framework covers 15 priority areas, including education, employment, hunger and poverty, health and the environment, globalisation, information and communication technologies, armed conflict, and intergenerational issues.

It demonstrates that action for young people cuts across every issue and that they are drivers of change.

At roughly 1.2 billion, today’s youth generation—people aged 15–24—is arguably the largest in history.

Youth are at the forefront of climate action, digital innovation, building local solutions, and championing human rights, said Guy Ryder, UN Under-Secretary-General for Policy, who spoke on behalf of the Secretary-General.

“Yet too often, they are shut out of decisions that shape their lives and face barriers to education, decent work, health services, and political participation,” he said.

“At the same time, violence, instability, and shrinking civic space silence youth voices and block their meaningful contributions.”

The commemoration not only marked progress since the landmark framework but also addressed unfinished business.

As the head of the UN’s Youth Office stated, the international community “must confront the sobering reality that millions of young people continue to be left behind.”

Felipe Paullier said they are the ones “paying the highest price” in the climate crisis, digital disruptions, and growing threats to peace.

“The reality is that conflict-related deaths have soared to the highest level since the adoption of the World Programme of Action for Youth,” he said.

“This means millions of young lives lost, displaced, or forever affected. From Gaza to Ukraine, from Haiti to the DRC, to Sudan and so many other places in crisis, young people are being robbed of their education, their safety, and their future.”

Ahead of the event, more than 75,000 young people in 182 countries shared their challenges and hopes through a foresight activity coordinated by his office.

The insights will help guide action, but this generation’s impact is already being felt worldwide.

“Young people are not waiting for tomorrow to become leaders; they are today’s leaders,” said Ms Baerbock, recalling that the recent historic ruling by the International Court of Justice on States’ obligations to address climate change was sparked by students in the Pacific.

For Amina Alidi, a youth advocate with the UN in Malawi, the event was “more than a commemoration” but “a call to action.”

“Young people remain steadfast in our optimism and determination to build a better future,” she said.

“What we ask of the United Nations and its Member States is simple but urgent: listen to us, invest in us, and most important of all, partner with us.”

James Casserly from Ireland, an advocate for young people with disabilities, advised global leaders on what youth participation really means.

“It is where people who have the power listen to us and take action because actions speak louder than words,” he said.

“It is more than a box-ticking exercise. It is when we get to make our own decisions, and not just have others make decisions on our behalf. As we always say, nothing about us without us.”