UN Secretary General addresses youth issues at Brussels event

One thousand young people were addressed and asked questions to Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary General, yesterday when he attended an event in Brussels. This event, entitled “Our world, our dignity, our future. The post-2015 agenda and the role of youth,” was jointly organised by the European Commission and the UN in the context of the European Year for Development 2015. It was broadcast live in selected schools across the EU and online, and it included a multilingual discussion on global and development issues with a specific focus on topics that matter to young people.

The event, which took place at the Bozar in Brussels, began with a panel in which youth ambassadors, aged between 14 and 27, and from countries across the world, discussed everything from education to the environment and the importance of a youth voice in decisions regarding these topics. Sitting on this panel was Luis Alvarado Martinez, Vice President of the European Youth Forum, who emphasised the importance of meaningful political participation from young people, especially the need for youth input in global decisions and for young people to be involved in the monitoring of the impact of such decisions.

Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, introduced the Secretary General and said: “Young people are the future of development. As they are the people who will be most affected by the decisions we take now, it is important to listen to their views and take them into account.”

The Secretary General then delivered his address, speaking about the importance of youth participation in politics as well as the UN’s commitment to ensuring young people are involved and included in the post-2015 agenda.

He said: “I believe in the power of young people. You must raise your voice when you hear injustice. You have been disproportionately affected and the unemployment rate of young people is staggering; more must be done to ensure that every young person has a job!”

Mr Ban then – echoing the comments from the Youth Forum’s Vice President earlier – urged young people to claim their rights and be part of the decision-making process, saying, “Often people say you are the leaders of tomorrow, but you are the leaders of today! Raise your voice and claim your rights!

Afterwards, he took questions from selected youth ambassadors, addressing specific questions on climate change, education, LGBTQ rights and more.

For more information see:

https://europa.eu/eyd2015/AskBanKimoon