1. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 1
DRAFT CONCEPT NOTE
UN WORLD YOUTH CONFERENCE-2014,SRI LANKA
STRENGTHENING THE ROLE OF YOUTH
IN DEVELOPMENT
Strengthening youth in decision making
processes in the development and
implementation of the post- 2015
development agenda
A. BACKGROUND1
For statistical purposes, the United Nations defines youth as individuals between the ages of 15
and 24. Young people currently number 1.2 billion, accounting for approximately 18 per cent of
the global population (United Nations, 2009b). Youth do not constitute a homogeneous group;
their socio-economic, demographic, and geographical situations vary widely both within and
between regions. Notwithstanding these differences, regional-level analysis provides a general
understanding of their development profile. The vast majority of the world’s youth—some 87
per cent—live in developing countries and face challenges such as limited access to resources,
education, training, employment, and broader economic development opportunities.
At present, 62 per cent of the world’s youth live in Asia and 17 per cent (the next largest
proportion) live in Africa; the population of young men and women in the two regions totals
about 960 million. By the middle of the twenty-first century, the proportion of youth living in
Asia is expected to decline to 53 per cent, while in Africa the proportion will likely rise
significantly, to 29 per cent (United Nations, 2009b). Although there are no disaggregated data
on youth living below the poverty line, it is evident that a substantial number of young people
reside in areas in which poverty constitutes a major challenge. Approximately 64 per cent of
youth in Africa and 84 per cent in Asia live in countries where at least one third of the
population subsists on less than US$ 2 per day (United Nations, 2009b; World Bank, 2007).
Youth are also concentrated in areas with limited access to basic social services. Employment is
an integral part of the transition to adulthood and plays a central role in the social integration
of young people. It provides youth with economic security and facilitates their participation in
society at multiple levels. Youth access to employment essentially translates into income and
1
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/documents/wyr10/Brief%20demographic.pdf
"Youth should be given a chance
to take an active part in the
decision-making of local, national
and global levels."
United Nations Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon
http://social.un.org/youthyear/

2. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 2
resource access, both of which are pivotal to shaping adaptive capacity (United Nations,
2007b). However, young people continue to be overrepresented among the world’s
unemployed; in 2007, youth comprised only 25 per cent of the working-age population but
accounted for more than 40 per cent of those who were jobless (International Labour Office,
2008). The global youth unemployment rate for 2007 stood at 12 per cent, or three times the
adult rate. In South-East Asia and the Pacific, youth unemployment rates as high as six times
those of adults have been recorded (International Labour Office, 2008).
For the vast majority of youth living in developing countries, unemployment rates tell only part
of the story. For young people in these areas, informal, non-secure, and low-wage employment
is the norm, with labour activity among youth concentrated in agriculture and related industries
and in the informal sector. More than 79 per cent of the world’s youth live in Africa, Asia, and
Oceania, where employment in agriculture comprises at least 35 per cent of total employment
(World Bank, 2008a; United Nations, 2009b). In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, agriculture
accounts for 65 per cent of employment (World Bank, 2008a). In several Asian countries youth
employment has shifted towards manufacturing or services, but agriculture remains a
significant employer of young workers, especially the younger segment of the youth cohort
(Asian Development Bank, 2008).
Education is another essential element in the transition to adulthood. However, a substantial
number of young people in developing countries continue to face challenges relating to
educational access and quality. Although the global youth literacy rate increased from 84 per
cent during the period 1985-1994 to 89 per cent during the period 2000-2006, progress has
been uneven, with youth literacy rates below 80 per cent recorded in sub-Saharan Africa and in
Southern and Western Asia (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,
2008). Secondary enrolment levels are as low as 25 per cent in some Pacific countries and 16
per cent in parts of Asia, but the lowest rates are found among youth in Africa (United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 2008). Large disparities in educational quality
and access also exist within countries owing to factors such as income, location, gender, and
ethnicity.
B. YOUTH AND MDG’S2:
The United Nations Millennium Declaration was adopted in 2000 by world leaders, committing
their countries to a new global partnership to reduce extreme poverty and setting out time-
bound goals on meeting the needs of the world’s poorest. These goals, to be achieved by 2015,
formed the basis for what are now known as the eight Millennium Development Goals, which
have been broken down into 21 quantified targets that are measured by 60 indicators.
Many youth remain marginalized from social and economic opportunities, with limited access
to essential resources. Eighty-seven per cent of the youth population live in developing
2
http://social.un.org/index/Youth/YouthintheUN/YouthandtheMDGs.aspx

3. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 3
countries, and nearly 45 per cent of all youth globally living on less than 2 dollars a day. Youth
are among the most vulnerable of all persons the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) aim
to reach. Whether it is poverty, hunger, lack of education, maternal mortality, unemployment,
environmental degradation or HIV/AIDS, the impact on young people can be far greater than on
their older counterparts. This is because many young people often lack access to information,
schooling, social influence and basic rights, and are often overlooked in national development
agendas. Therefore, young people’s participation and inclusion in efforts to achieve all of the
goals are crucial to ensure a successful and sustainable outcome.
C. SRI LANKA AND MDGs
Sri Lanka as a Member State of the United Nations and committed to the UN Charter is working
diligently to fulfill its national and global responsibilities in achieving the Millennium
Development Goals. The Sri Lanka National Campaign for Achieving the MDGs is spearheaded
and administered by the Ministry of Finance and Planning, with the support of the UN Country
Team and with direct implementation assistance by the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP). The National Council for Economic Development (NCED) brings together
stakeholders from the private and state sectors to develop economic policies and action plans.
The “Mahinda Chinthana; 10 year development framework” clearly specifies the Government’s
commitment for the achievement of MDGs for all Sri Lankans across the entire country. The
Government in its budget preparation has called to relate the MDG key performance indicators
of ministries to the budgetary process. With peace and stability returning, Sri Lanka has a
unique opportunity to focus more on the MDGs, especially addressing those related to regional
imbalances. While Sri Lanka is well on track in achieving most of the MDGs targets by 2015 at
the national level, the country should consider MDG plus goals and also moving from the
national level to MDG localization at provincial and regional levels. Sri Lanka is constantly
seeking to adopt innovative methods in working with youth in the achievement of MDG goals.
D. SRI LANKA’S COMMITMENT TO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND PARTICIPATION
The youth population of the country is 26 per cent of its 20 million people. Sri Lanka can share
good practices in addressing youth issues. Our experience has shown that youth related issues
are directly linked to the country’s peace and security. In this regard ensuring their access to
education, health and productive employment remains critical. Recognizing this reality,
committed investments in the health and education sectors and targeted social protection
schemes have been the cornerstones of Sri Lanka’s social policies. Sri Lanka’s development
policy framework has been premised on a set of higher level multiple goals focusing on
economic growth, redistributive justice, reduction of absolute poverty, employment
generation, balanced regional development and increased environmental sustainability. These
policies have enabled Sri Lanka to deliver desirable human development outcomes in a
consistent manner.

4. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 4
In order to broaden the employment opportunities for our youth and enable them to compete
better in job markets, the Ministry of Youth Affairs is integrated with skill development – a
single entity making it the 3rd
largest segment in the annual budget. We encourage our youth to
be innovative and creative. The 2010 United Nations General Assembly outcome document on
the MDGs has also endorsed a similar call for effecting such improvements.
In post-conflict Sri Lanka, policy makers and leaders are seeking to create a more secure, better
and progressive environment for the country’s youth. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills
Development and institutions under its supervision such as the National Youth Services Council
of Sri Lanka have established youth capacity building programmes throughout the country to
impart entrepreneurial skills, social and life -skills, non -violent conflict resolution, and
vocational training to increase their overall capacity for gainful employment and enhance their
quality of life. The network of Youth Centers under the National Youth Services Council has an
outreach to 12,000 villages out of the 14,000 total villages across the country. Vocational
training centers have been re -established in the North and the East to provide opportunities to
those youth who missed years of schooling during the conflict. Special programmes called
“Catch-up School Programmes” have been set up to ensure completion of secondary education
for former young adult and child combatants.
A Youth Parliament of Sri Lanka was conceived and implemented to mark the International Year
of Youth. The Youth Parliament comprises 335 members between the age group 15 and 26
years representing all ethnic communities in the country. 25 per cent of the young
parliamentarians are from the predominantly Tamil areas in the North. The impetus for setting
up the Youth Parliament was to create leaders or representatives nurtured in the finest
democratic ideals and practices. It also provides an important opportunity in post-conflict Sri
Lanka to foster ideals of peace, solidarity, and harmony among the country’s younger
generation. These aspiring leaders in the Youth Parliament could one day meaningfully
contribute to strengthening and revitalizing the country’s democratic institutions, democratic
governance and further promote ideals of peace, tolerance and justice.
Having a stable and peaceful environment is a key to achieving MGD targets by 2015 and Sri
Lanka is on course to reaching that milepost.
E. OBJECTIVES
It is hoped that the following objectives are reviewed collectively by all Member States and all
relevant stakeholders.
• To facilitate a process that strengthens effective youth participation in the decision
making of post -2015 development agenda.
• To facilitate effective partnerships with youth and youth organizations in the
implementation of the post -2015 development agenda.

5. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 5
• To create an inclusive platform with youth that enables them to review the progress of
MDGs, share ideas, experiences and innovative approaches for effectively contributing to
the post -MDG agenda and its implementation.
• To establish a follow- up mechanism that support young people as partners in the global
implementation of the post -2015 development agenda.
F. YOUTH CENTERED PROCESS
The Sri Lankan Government will take measures to ensure that the forthcoming UN World
Conference is not just a one- off event on youth. We firmly believe that, in order, to make an
impact in partnership with youth we need to invest in a youth centered preparatory process
leading to the Conference and most importantly, a commitment to a follow -up phase in
partnership with young people in the implementation of the post -MDG development agenda.
The following is a brief description of the proposed three phases:
1. Youth Centered Preparatory Processes (2012-2013)
It is envisaged that this process will support youth led processes in the post -MDG agenda that
enable their effective participation in contributing to key sessions that will shape the post -2015
development agenda. It will be vital to work closely with Governments, UN agencies, Youth
organizations, and other stakeholders that are supporting young women and young men to
effectively engage in discussions related to the above. The preparatory process will cover
various regions and work with ongoing regional processes that are shaping the post- MDG
agenda. We urge Governments and key actors to join us in the preparatory process.
The main goal here is to support young people to be able partners in the development of the
Post -MDG agenda so that when they participate in the Conference in 2014 they are able to
share the role they played and the success of their contributions.
2. World Youth Conference 2014 (2014)
The conference itself will allow for joint reflection, consolidation of experiences from the
preparatory processes and also act as a spring -board for strengthening the partnership with
youth in the implementation of the post -MDG agenda
3. Youth Centered Follow -Up Process (Beyond 2015 – 2020)
Past lessons clearly show that lack of investment in follow -up can derail the work, enthusiasm
and energy to reach the next significant milepost. We strongly feel the need for the
commitment of all stakeholders in the follow-up phase so that youth can be supported to
become effective partners in realization of the development goals in the post- 2015 agenda.
G. RESOURCE COMMITMENT BY SRI LANKA

6. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 6
The Government of Sri Lanka is committed to undertaking the responsibility in facilitating and
leading the processes up to 2014, in organizing the World Youth Conference in Sri Lanka and
then setting up a follow-up plan and a mechanism. The Government of Sri Lanka is willing to
take the responsibility of organizing the groundwork for the global process with global
ownership which will enable young people to contribute to the decision making process for a
post -2015 development agenda as well as discuss their partnership in its implementation. Sri
Lanka as a Member State of the United Nations and in order to fulfill its commitment towards
global cooperation and support for youth is willing to undertake the financial cost of facilitating
and hosting a UN World Youth Conference in 2014.
H. PARTNERSHIPS
The Government of Sri Lanka would like to invite all Member States to this pioneering process.
We seek advice from the UN and Youth Organizations and other stakeholders to make this a
truly youth centered experience.

7. DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION
Page | 7