“I'm truly happy to address you on International Youth Day,” the Secretary-General said a video message. “As Secretary-General of the United Nations, I am committed to the empowerment and inclusion of every young person around the world,” he added.

“In this spirit, I have appointed an impressive new Youth Envoy,” he said, introducing 26-year-old Jayathma Wickramanayake of Sri Lanka as the youngest and “one of the most important” members of his team.

Upcoming Events

55th Session of the Commission for Social Development (New York, 1 - 10 February 2017) bit.ly/CSocD55

The priority theme for the 2017-2018 review and policy cycle will be "Strategies for the eradication of poverty to achieve sustainable development for all".

On 8 September 2017, the United Nations General Assembly adopted, without a vote, a resolution titled, “enhancing the participation of Indigenous Peoples’ representatives and institutions in meetings of relevant United Nations bodies on issues affecting them” (document A/RES/71/321), as orally amended.&n

Upcoming Events

Regional Reviews of the 3rd cycle of Review and Appraisal of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing

For more information about the review, please visit the Official MIPAA Review and Appraisal Web Page

The University of Colorado Law School and the Secretariat of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (SPFII) are hosting a two-day event on 13-14 September, 2017, to commemorate the Tenth Anniversary of the adoption of the

On the 9th of August, we are commemorating the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. Come join us in the commemoration of this special day!

Statements launched for the day:

The 2017 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), convened under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council, took place from  10 to 19 July 2017, and concluded in New York on 19 July by adopting its Ministerial Declaration.*

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development sets out a universal plan of action to achieve sustainable development in a balanced manner and seeks to realize the human rights of all people. It calls for leaving no one behind and for ensuring that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are met for all segments of society, at all ages, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable—including older persons.

An important step towards meeting the 2030 Agenda’s aspiration of leaving no one behind is to identify who is being left behind and from what. Hoping to contribute to this discussion, the recently released Report on the World Social Situation 2016 (United Nations, 2016) examines group-based inequalities, with the focus being mainly on the disadvantages faced by youth, older persons, persons with disabilities, racial and ethnic minorities and migrants.

By resolution 49/214 of 23 December 1994, the United Nations General Assembly decided that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples shall be observed on 9 August every year. The date marks the first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982.