A call to ensure the participation of girls, boys, adolescents and youth in Latin America and the Caribbean in all stages of implementation of the 2030 Agenda and to value their contributions in order to achieve sustainable development in the region, leaving no one behind , made this Monday, April 24, representatives of various agencies of the United Nations Organization (UN) that participated in the Fifth Forum of Girls, Boys, Adolescents and Youth of Latin America and the Caribbean 2030 Made in Santiago, Chile.
The UN recognizes the leadership of young people in the process of fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and is committed to continuing to support their participation at all levels in a systematic and inclusive manner, the representatives stated.
The meeting was held within the framework of the Sixth Meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Developmentwhich starts this Tuesday, April 25, at the headquarters of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Chile, and the Youth Forum of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC, for its acronym in English). , which will take place from April 25 to 27 in a hybrid format.
It was inaugurated by Maria Sujkowska, Global Focal Point of the Group of Boys, Girls, Adolescents and Youth (C&J) of Latin America and the Caribbean and representative of the Norte Grande Studies and Development Corporation; and Mario Lubetkin, Deputy Director General and Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Subsequently, an intergenerational panel took place, which included the participation of José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary of ECLAC; María José Torres, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Chile; Michelle Muschett, Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP); and Susana Sottoli, Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
“Despite extreme difficulties, we have managed to remain united, resilient and committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and above all to its mission: to leave no one behind”, stated Maria Sujkowska, from the C&J Group.
Since December, more than 500 boys, girls, adolescents, and young people, between the ages of 7 and 35, from more than 20 countries in the region and belonging to various groups, have been involved in the process that gave life to the Forum, whose conclusions They will be shared with the Member States of ECLAC and presented at the Sixth Meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development, at the ECOSOC Youth Forum and at the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (held annually in July in New York), he explained.
“For me there is no better way to start the Sixth Meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development 2023 than in an event like this, with the youth of the region, listening and interacting with their voices and perspectives. which are essential to call our attention to what really matters both for the present and for the future of the region”, said José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary of ECLAC.
“Intergenerational dialogue and the participation of youth in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda is truly an imperative. To successfully manage societies and democracy, the involvement of all stakeholders is required,” remarked the highest representative of ECLAC, who appreciated that young people are concerned about how to speed up the pace to meet the SDGs in a complex context and loaded with uncertainty. “At the United Nations we are convinced that the way forward is to involve them and create more spaces for participation at all levels because it is a work of collective action,” he stressed.
Mario Lubetkin pointed out that “from FAO we are working to strengthen capacities that improve production systems so that they can be more resilient, efficient and sustainable, but, above all, more inclusive; and the role of rural youth is essential in the development of the livelihoods of their communities, particularly those that support the agri-food system; and where there are higher levels of exclusion and social vulnerability, with limitations on decent employment and access to technology and digital tools”.
Michelle Muschett said that “at the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) we value the importance of the intergenerational exchange of experiences and the contributions of youth to strengthen the sustainable development of the region and address current challenges as a society. For this reason, we have given priority to the institutional strengthening of youth and the promotion of their citizen participation in decision-making processes in order to build a fairer and more prosperous future for all.”
Susana Sottoli, Regional Director of UNFPA, pointed out that “when we talk about investing in youth in a sustainable way, we are talking about the priority of investing in adolescence, in childhood, in youth, within the distribution of wealth in a country ”. Today in the region there are more than 160 million adolescents and young people between the ages of 10 and 24: one in four people is an adolescent or young person in this region, she recalled. “This means that most of the countries are still going through what is called the ‘demographic bonus’, a window of opportunity that is going to close soon, since the dynamic that is coming is the aging of the population,” she said.
María José Torres, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Chile, referred to the words of the UN Deputy Secretary General, Amina J. Mohammed: “the UN belongs to young people, so they must make it their own and perfect it”. “Keep working for your rights, defending democracy, fighting to participate and make this world a better one. And, for this, count on the UN, which is yours, ”she declared.
The Forum took place at the FAO headquarters in Chile, with the support of ECLAC (as counterpart of the youth mechanisms that convene the Forum) in coordination with the Regional Interagency Working Group on Youth -led by UNDP and UNFPA- of the Regional Collaboration Platform for Latin America and the Caribbeanin which 24 entities of the United Nations System in the region participate.
During the meeting there were working groups on SDGs 6 (Clean water and sanitation), 7 (Affordable and clean energy), 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure), 11 (Sustainable cities and communities) and 17 (Partnerships to achieve the Objectives), prioritized for the High Level Political Forum 2023.
