International Youth Day

In 1999, the General Assembly endorsed the recommendation made by the  World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth (Lisbon, 8-12 August 1998) that 12 August be declared International Youth Day.

International Youth Day gives an opportunity to celebrate and mainstream young peoples’ voices, actions and initiatives, as well as their meaningful, universal and equitable engagement.

Youth

There is no universally agreed international definition of the youth age group. For statistical purposes, however, the United Nations - without prejudice to any other definitions made by Member States - defines "youth" as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years. This definition, which arose in the context of preparations for the International Youth Year (1985) (see A/36/215), was endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolution 36/28 of 1981. 

This statistically oriented definition of youth, in turn, entails that children are considered those persons under the age of 14. Worthy of note, however, is that Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child defines ‘children’ as persons up to the age of 18. At the time, it was hoped that the Convention would provide protection and rights to as large an age-group as possible, especially as there was no similar document on the rights of youth.

Many countries also draw the line on youth with regard to the age at which a person is given equal treatment under the law - often referred to as the "age of majority." This age is commonly 18 in many countries; so that once a person attains this age, he or she is considered to be an adult. Nonetheless, the operational definition and nuances of the term "youth" vary from country to country, depending on relative sociocultural, institutional, economic and political factors.

Today, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 per cent of the global population . By 2030 - the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda - the number of youth is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion.

2023 Theme: Green Skills for Youth: Towards a Sustainable World

The theme of International Youth Day 2023, "Green Skills for Youth: Towards a Sustainable World".

Today, the world is embarking on a green transition. The shift towards an environmentally sustainable and climate-friendly world is critical not only for responding to the global climate crisis but also for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A successful transition towards a greener world will depend on the development of green skills in the population. Green skills are “knowledge, abilities, values and attitudes needed to live in, develop and support a sustainable and resource-efficient society”.

These include technical knowledge and skills that enable the effective use of green technologies and processes in occupational settings, as well as transversal skills that draw on a range of knowledge, values and attitudes to facilitate environmentally sustainable decisions in work and in life. Due to their interdisciplinary nature, the essence of green skills is sometimes expressed, partly if not wholly, through other associated terms such as “skills for the future” and “skills for green jobs”. While green skills are relevant for people of all ages, they have heightened importance for younger people, who can contribute to the green transition for a longer period of time.

Did you know?

• Half of the people on our planet are 30 or younger, and this is expected to reach 57% by the end of 2030.
• Survey shows that 67% of people believe in a better future, with 15 to 17 year-olds being the most optimistic about this.
• The majority of people agree that the age balance in politics is wrong. More than two thirds (69%) of people across all age groups agree that more opportunities for younger people to have a say in policy development/change would make political systems better.
• Globally, only 2.6% of parliamentarians are under 30 years old, and less than 1% of these young MPs are women.

Global Employment Trends for Youth 2022

Recovery in youth employment is still lagging, according to a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO), which confirms that the COVID-19 pandemic has hurt young people more than any other age group. 

The Global Employment Trends for Youth 2022: Investing in transforming futures for young people report finds that the pandemic has exacerbated the numerous labour market challenges facing those aged between 15 and 24 years, who have experienced a much higher percentage loss in employment than adults since early 2020. The total global number of unemployed youths is estimated to reach 73 million in 2022, a slight improvement from 2021 (75 million) but still six million above the pre-pandemic level of 2019, the report says. 

The share of youth not in employment, education or training (NEET) in 2020 – the latest year for which a global estimate is available – rose to 23.3 per cent, an increase of 1.5 percentage points from the previous year and a level not seen in at least 15 years. This group of young people are at particular risk of seeing their labour market opportunities and outcomes deteriorate also over the longer-term as “scarring” effects take hold. 

Young women are worse off than young men, exhibiting a much lower employment-to-population ratio (EPR). In 2022, 27.4 per cent of young women globally are projected to be in employment, compared to 40.3 per cent of young men. This means that young men are almost 1.5 times more likely than young women to be employed. The gender gap, which has shown little sign of closing over the past two decades, is largest in lower-middle-income countries, at 17.3 percentage points, and smallest in high-income countries, at 2.3 percentage points.

To view the complete report, click here. 

Source : UN