UNFPA & Indonesia to Host Global Youth Forum in Bali

By IPS Correspondent Reprint | | Print |

BALI, Nov 26 2012 (IPS) - About 900 youth leaders, government and civil society representatives from almost every country in the world, representing about 43% of the world’s population under age 25, will convene in Bali to participate in the “ ICPD Beyond 2014” Global Youth Forum to develop official recommendations for the United Nation’s development agenda. The meeting is scheduled to take place December 4-6.

Delegates in Bali will be connected to 2000 youth leaders around the world, who will participate via an online platform to provide a shared response to the social, economic and human rights challenges and opportunities faced by their generation.

The Forum will be opened by Indonesian Vice-President, Boediono, and Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) which has been mandated by the UN to carry out a review of the Programme of Action of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The Global Youth Forum is part of this ICPD review.

The original ICPD Programme of Action placed the rights and health needs of young people, in particular those of young women, at the centre of development policy, setting out a series of goals to address their needs.

Since 1994, progress has been made in many areas and while new opportunities have emerged, young people still face considerable challenges in relation to equitable access to health, education, employment, reproductive rights and civil participation, according to UNFPA.

The Forum will include a series of youth led plenaries and “world café” sessions to discuss five key agenda issues including: staying healthy; comprehensive education, transitions to decent work; sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights and civic participation and leadership.

Concrete recommendations on each of these topics emerging from the Forum will be presented to the UN General Assembly in 2014 and will be incorporated into planning for the post- 2015 development agenda at country, regional and global levels.