Envoy’s Workplan

The overall priorities of the Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth are guided by the priority areas of the World Programme of Action for Youth and the priority areas of the UN System Wide Action Plan on Youth.
Continued focus will be placed on Youth on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Employment, Civic Engagement, Peace and Security, and Promoting Youth Policies while ensuring the integration of a gender perspective across all work areas. In parallel, the OSGEY will continue to support the Education First Initiative and the planned activities in relation to youth and education.
Further to consultations with Member States, Youth Organizations and the Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development (IANYD), and taking note of the Terms of Reference of the Envoy, and in response to the request of the Secretary-General to the Office to support harmonizing the UN efforts in youth, and further to the General Assembly Resolution A/C.3/70/L.11/Rev.1 on policies and programmes involving youth and the Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security, the Office of UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth will work on the following priority principles, goals and actions:

Principles: Participation, Advocacy, Partnerships and Harmonization

1. Participation

Goal: Increase accessibility of young women and men (including marginalized youth) to the United Nations through promoting structured mechanisms for youth participation at national, regional and international levels

Actions:

Promote structured mechanisms for youth participation in the UN

• Facilitate the participation of youth-led organizations in youth related policies and programmes at the United Nations
• Co-organize the ECOSOC Youth Forum and promote it as a structured participation mechanism for youth and youth stakeholders in the UN review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
• Support the efforts of the regional youth platforms and organizations
• Convene an International Stakeholders Meeting on Youth Policies bringing together major regional and global youth actors
• Convene an Expert Group Meeting on youth participation in the UN System
• Support youth participation in the major UN intergovernmental processes such as 22nd Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), Special Session of the UN General Assembly on the World Drug Problem
• Work with the Resident Coordinators (RCs) and United Nations Country Teams (UNCTs) to establish and strengthen existing Youth Advisory Panels to engage youth in the preparation of the UN programmes and projects at the national level
• Encourage more Member States to participate in the Youth Delegate Programme
• Promote the participation of young men and women in peacebuilding and in efforts to prevent and counter violent extremism and advance the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth Peace and Security.

Strengthen the channels of communications between young people and the United Nations and enhance youth access to information related to the United Nations’ work on youth

• Coordinate regularly with youth and youth-led organizations and networks
• Maintain and expand the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth’s digital presence to provide youth with timely and relevant news, reports, and opportunities from the UN system.
• Launch the “Youth Gateway” platform to serve as a central online portal for young people to learn about and take action on the SDGs
• Maintain and open up new channels of interaction with youth through different digital platforms to engage young people in the work of the UN with and for youth.
• Support youth-led organizations and networks in accessing the UN by increasing the number of youth events supported by the UN

2. Advocacy

Goal: Promote stronger youth engagement in setting, implementing and evaluating the various development frameworks and increase international awareness and attention to youth issues

Actions:

Promote investments in youth development and youth participation in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

• Promote the role of young people in the implementation and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
• Establish the “Youth Champions for the SDGs” to advocate for SDG awareness, achievement, engagement, partnerships and implementation with and for young people
• Promote the “Global Youth Check” and the inclusion of youth development indicators in the finalization of the global framework of indicators of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
• Support youth groups such as the Major Group for Children and Youth, IMCYO, YOUNGO and similar networks in advocating for youth rights and development
• Promote the role of young entrepreneurs in implementing the SDGs
• Develop a Global Youth Index on the SDGs to highlight the status of young people in the SDGs, areas of progress and urgent need
• Promote the role of young researchers in developing think pieces and conceptual approaches for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda

Undertake country missions and utilize various platforms to advocate for a stronger youth agenda at the national, regional and international level

• Facilitate the celebration of the International Youth Day and World Youth Skills Day across the UN system and the youth sector
• Support youth forums and events covering thematic and geographic areas
• Support the organization of the first-ever Forum on Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, with the theme “Widening the democratic space: the role of youth in decision-making”, organized by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
• Address the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues during its 15th session on the issue addressing self-harm and suicide among indigenous young people
• Support youth engagement in the World Humanitarian Summit, in particular the High Level Session on Youth, and the Summit’s preceding Youth Pre-Event, as well as the Youth Event of the 7th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, and the Youth Forum of UN-Women
• Maintain close coordination on youth issues with the regional organizations such as the European Union, Council of Europe, African Union, League of Arab States, Organization of American States, Ibero-American Organization, the International Organization of la Francophonie, the Commonwealth, ASEAN, Pacific Community, CARICOM and others

Promote the Youth, Peace, and Security Agenda and Security Council Resolution 2250

• Raise awareness of and support the implementation of the Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace, and Security in coordination with UN System agencies and in partnership with civil society and youth organizations and networks
• Promote the role of young peacebuilders in building sustainable peace and preventing extremism
• Support PBSO in carrying the Progress Study on young people’s contribution to peacebuilding as requested in Security Council Resolution 2250
• Advocate for stronger youth participation in peace talks and peacebuilding efforts
• Support the youth-led projects and initiatives on preventing violent extremism in compliance with the recommendations outlined in the Secretary-General’s Plan of Action on Preventing Violent Extremism

Deploy traditional and new media tools to advocate for effective responses to address the development needs of youth and stronger youth participation with special focus on marginalized youth and young women and girls

• Expand the Office online platform by providing a one-stop shop information centre for all youth related news and opportunities in the UN
• Enhance the dissemination of youth-related information/reports and statistics on the situation of youth
• Provide key advocacy messages through social media and e-publications
• Ensure increased national and international media coverage for youth issues
• Promote the protection of youth rights and demands, particularly for marginalized groups and youth in conflict zones.

3. Partnerships

Goal:
Engage Member States, private sector, foundations, academic institutions, media and civil society, including youth-led organizations in the UN programmes on youth and facilitate multi-stakeholder partnerships on youth issues

Actions:

Convene the Global Youth Partnership for SDGs

• Provide a platform and facilitate dialogue and exchange between key international and regional stakeholders to reflect on progress made in engaging youth in the implementation of the SDGs and discuss youth development trends in relation to the 2030 Agenda
• Strengthen a global youth movement to contribute to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals
• Increase youth awareness and engagement in the UN and other programmes, global action and innovation for the implementation of SDGs by creating the “Youth Gateway” online platform, an interactive hub for youth participation in SDG implementation
• Support networking of youth-led organizations and other youth stakeholders with the national, regional and international youth councils and networks
• Mobilize financial support for youth programs in the context of the SDGs

Coordinate closely with Member States to increase investments in youth policies and to reinforce a youth perspective in relevant resolutions

• Meet regularly with the Ministers of Youth and the Permanent Missions of Member States to the United Nations
• Coordinate regularly with Ministers of Youth and UN agencies at the national and regional levels

Promote and support the Global Initiative on National Youth Policies and strengthen the evidence-based research on youth issues in partnership with several UN agencies

• Raise awareness of the importance of developing inclusive, resourced and cross-sectoral youth policies
• Enhance the knowledge management and research on youth policies
• Promote the outcomes of the 3rd Financing for Development Conference by encouraging Members States to increase to financing to national youth strategies and programs

Support the development and implementation of the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth

• Support the implementation of the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth through continued engagement in multi-stakeholder partnerships and advocacy
• Support the resource mobilization efforts for the initiative and the partnership development

4. Harmonization

Goal:
Serve as a catalyst to enhance the coordination and harmonization of youth programming among UN agencies and beyond.

Actions:
Promote the implementation of the World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY)

• Encourage Member States to develop national youth policies incorporating the principles of the WPAY, as well as the principles of the Baku Commitment to Youth Policies
• Encourage Member States to report on the implementation of the WPAY

Encourage and support the establishment of inter-agency networks at regional and national levels and the implementation of the System Wide Action Plan (SWAP) on Youth

• Support the implementation of the UN SWAP on Youth at regional and national levels
• Promote national coordination mechanisms between UN agencies
• Support fundraising events and partnerships opportunities to support the implementations of the UN-SWAP on Youth
• Strengthen the review of existing practices and lessons learned in youth engagement and participation at the national level and provide guidance to UNCTs as needed
• Support the development of guidance note for youth participation and mainstreaming in UNDAF process

Enhance the communications and the flow of information between UN agencies and UN Country Teams

• Enhance the dissemination of the UN news on youth
• Increase coordination and flow of youth-related content from UN agencies, departments, offices and country teams to be disseminated through web and social media platforms providing youth with timely and relevant news and opportunities from the UN system.

Support implementation of the Youth Volunteerism strategy and advocate for promotion of volunteering among youth and recruitment of young people as volunteers in large scale UN Programmes

Click here to download a copy of the workplan

Click here to download the OSGEY Progress Report