‘Give young people decent jobs and they will create a better future’ – UN chief | Division for Inclusive Social Development (DISD)

When young people have decent jobs, political weight, negotiating muscle and real influence in the world, they will create a better future, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today as he kicked off a Headquarters event on empowering youth through employment.

“A lack of jobs feeds insecurity. A jobs-rich country can have a wealth of stability. Young people are forced to bear the brunt of conflicts. They should be given the chance to carry the banner of peace,” Mr. Ban told the General Assembly.

“The world now has the largest generation of young people in history. I place great hopes in their power to shape our future. They are part of the first generation that can end poverty and the last that can avoid the worst impacts of climate change,” he added.

Today’s High-Level Event on the Demographic Dividend and Youth Employment essentially takes stock of how countries with large populations of young people and declining fertility rates stand poised to benefit the most from this so-called demographic dividend.

Co-organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), today’s event follows last Friday’s General Assembly meeting that marked the 20th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth and will consist of two panel discussions on the demographic dividend and creating opportunities for employment.

“We renewed our commitment to the World Programme of Action,” Mr. Ban said about Friday’s meeting. “And I stressed that we cannot talk about sustainable development without the active involvement of youth.”

This year the United Nations hopes to change the course of human history by adopting the new development agenda at our special summit on sustainable development in New York in September and a universal climate change agreement at conference in Paris this December.

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