Engaging youth, giving them a seat at the table should be the new law: PGA

Engaging youth, creating a space for them and giving them a seat at the table should be the new law, says Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives and President of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Abdulla Shahid.

He said this in his message on the occasion of International Youth Day, celebrated annually on August 12.

As such, PGA Shahid that youth communities make up 16 percent of the global population and makes up the largest youth cohort in human history, numbering 1.8 billion.

Highlighting that their passions and aspirations are equally large in scale, PGA Shahid stressed that they demand to be heard and that the globe owes it to them to listen.

With this, he urged leaders worldwide to include them in shaping the world they will inherit.

However, PGA Shahid stressed that much of the youth communities across the globe, lack adequate support and investment, according to the findings of 2022 Global Youth Index.

Noting that they feel “marginalized” and “excluded”, PGA Shahid stated that the post-Covid landscape has further exacerbated the disconnect between the current generation and the next with many of the youth communities voicing the various challenges they face due to ageism.

The PGA highlighted that the globe undermines its future by giving into ageism and dismissing youth communities, especially when they are so eager to contribute to pressing global issues such as climate change, poverty, the Covid-19 pandemic and societal and geopolitical tensions.

With this being said, PGA Shahid called on the global community to address this inter-generational rift, to embrace an attitude of listening to the perspectives of all ages, so that a way will be paved for a richer and deeper understanding of the challenges experienced by all members of communities globally.

Shahid went on to urge the global leaders to work towards building inter-generational solidarity and ensure they are creating a world for “all” ages.

He highlighted that engaging youth, creating a space for them and giving them a seat at the table should be the new law.

That, PGA Shahid said, is how a “truly” inclusive recovery will be secured.

This is also the means through which the world can lay a foundation for a “brighter” and a “more optimistic” future for today’s young and for the generations that will follow.