Young people today are the largest generation of youth in history, with about 1.5 billion young people between the ages of 12-24, but they continue to be disproportionately affected by policies and programmes that fail to recognize the centrality of young people’s human rights in achieving development goals and ensuring that young people are able to live full, healthy and enjoyable lives.

 

The Programme of Action (PoA) of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), which was agreed to by 179 countries in 1994, provides a comprehensive framework to realize sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for all, especially for women and young people. However, progress on implementing the ICPD PoA and the key Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which would contribute to young people’s health and well-being – MDG 3 (gender equality), MDG 5B (universal access to reproductive health) and MDG 6 (HIV/AIDS) – has not been translated into action consistently.

 

Beginning this year, the Youth Coalition will be organizing a series of regional workshops to build the capacity of young activists to incorporate youth SRHR issues in the ICPD Beyond 2014’s review, the MDG review and national poverty reduction strategy processes. The first workshop “Regional SRHR and Advocacy workshop in the lead up to ICPD+20” will bring together up to 22 young people from the region.