Today is International Youth Day

Today is being observed as International Youth Day.

According to the United Nations, the theme for  this year is Youth Civic Engagement. Youth Civic Engagement, a main goal of the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan on Youth (Youth-SWAP), seeks to promote young people’s effective inclusive civic engagement at all levels.

To commemorate the day, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), with the support of the UN Inter-agency Network on Youth Development, is organising an event  under the theme Youth Civic Engagement. The event will consist of two inter-active panels, which will showcase inspiring ways in which young people engage in civic, political and social spheres and explore how the issue of youth civic engagement is an enabler for an enhanced and inclusive participation of young women and men in decision-making and public life. It will bring together young people, youth organisations, Member State representatives, civil society, media and UN entities to discuss the issue of youth civic engagement, in particular looking at new and emerging issues and approaches to social and political engagement in different parts of the world.