Joint Statement of the UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development

The UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development (IANYD) issued the following joint statement on the occasion of the UN High-Level Meeting on Youth, held in UN Headquarters, New York, 25-26 July 2011. (PDF version.)

On the occasion of the United Nations High-Level Meeting on Youth, we pledge to increase the effectiveness of the United Nations in advocating for and supporting national efforts to accelerate the implementation of international agreements and development goals as they relate to adolescents and youth.

We join Member States and youth-led organizations in building on synergies to promote the ideals of peace, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, gender equality, solidarity, progress and development as guided by the proclamation of the International Year of Youth by the General Assembly. The Year has provided an opportunity to work together to enhance dialogue and mutual understanding among young people worldwide, to promote the participation of young women and men at all levels and to increase commitments and investments to promote adolescent and youth development. With strengthened resolve, we stand ready to work as one within the United Nations to support young people in achieving their aspirations.

In the coming years, we will intensify efforts within our respective mandates at the global, regional and national levels, including through strengthening mechanisms such as the Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development, in order to promote and support:

1. COMPREHENSIVE POLICIES that include young people's issues and voices, and enhance the use of data on young people to promote development and poverty reduction;
2. MULTISECTORAL PROGRAMMES that promote the human rights and fulfil the development needs of adolescents and youth, including marginalized adolescent girls;
3. STRENGTHENED CAPACITIES of national institutions and youth-led organizations to implement coordinated youth policies and programmes;
4. FULL AND EFFECTIVE YOUTH PARTICIPATION in society and decision-making, in both rural and urban settings, striving to include young people with disabilities, young people living with HIV, indigenous young people, young people from minorities, young migrants, young people who are stateless, internally displaced, young refugees or those affected by humanitarian situations or armed conflict.

We reaffirm our pledge to make young people a priority in our work and commit to incorporate their perspectives within our organizations and in the United Nations system.

We call on governments, civil society, the private sector, donors, media, communities, youth-led organizations, voluntary associations and other stakeholders to join us in making this a world fit for young people.

The undersigned,

Michelle BACHELET
Executive Director, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Alicia BARCENA
Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)

Irina BOKOVA
Director-General, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

Margaret CHAN
Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO)

Helen CLARK
Administrator, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Joan CLOS
Executive Director, United Nations Human Settlements Programme

Radhika COOMARASWAMY
Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict

Cheick Sidi DIARRA
Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA)

Ahmed DJOGHLAF
Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity

Antonio GUTERRES
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Noeleen HEYZER
Executive Secretary, UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)

Abdoulie JANNEH
Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)

Rima KHALAFM
Executive Secretary, UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA)

Jan KUBIS
Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)

Antony LAKE
Executive Director, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)

David MORRISON
Executive Secretary, United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)

Babatunde OSOTIMEHIN
Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

Flavia PANSIERI
Executive Coordinator, United Nations Volunteers (UNV)

Taleb RIFAI
Secretary-General, World Tourism Organization (WTO)

Jorge SAMPAIO
UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations

Michel SIDIBÉ
Executive Director, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)

Juan SOMAVIA
Director-General, International Labour Organization (ILO)

Hamadoun TOURÉ
Secretary-General, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

Kandeh K. YUMKELLA
Director-General, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

Sha ZUKANG
Under-Secretary-General, Department of Social and Economic Affairs (UNDESA)