Youth Participation Still Missing in Global Peace building efforts

Addressing the UN Security Council during an open debate on the youth, peace and security, the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, JayathmaWickramanayake underlined three critical areas that can close the gap between youth, peace and security: supporting youth’s peace efforts, prioritizing their political participation and partnering with them. She further argued that the youth represent promise but not peril; they are at best an asset and not a problem. Leaders should recognize projects initiated by the youth, fund them, scale them up and protect them. She also called upon all governance stakeholders to fully engage with young people in electoral processes and political party structures and not to perceive them “too young to run” for Public Office.She calls for inclusion of young people in political, civic and economic life. In her conclusion she highlighted that the interests of young people and the work they do, naturally traverses the pillars of peace, development and human rights, and they make it clear that protection and prevention are inseparable.
https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/04/1007962?utm_source=UN+News+ +Newsletter&utm_campaign=fd858a373c-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_04_23&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fdbf1af606-fd858a373c-105792121
By Audrey Adhiambo