About 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 August 12th 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. The commemoration will take the form of a podcast-style discussion that is hosted by youth for youth, together with independently organized commemorations around the world that recognize the importance of youth participation in political, economic and social life and processes.
- Did you know? The proportion of young people not in employment, education or training (the youth NEET rate) has remained stubbornly high over the past 15 years and now stands at 30% for young women and 13% for young men worldwide.
- Did you know? Recent estimates suggest that 600 million jobs would have to be created over the next 15 years to meet youth employment needs.
- 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.
- Did you know? Survey shows that 67% of people believe in a better future, with 15 to 17 year-olds being the most optimistic about this.
- Did you know? 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.
- Did you know? Globally, only 2.6% of parliamentarians are under 30 years old, and less than 1% of these young MPs are women.
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