Act to promote the rights of all young migrants and maximize the development potential of youth migration.

 

Act to promote the rights of all young migrants and maximize the development potential of youth migration.

The above is what I consider to be the take home message from the United Nations Secretary General's Message for 2013 on the International Youth Day, celebrated on August 12th of every year.

Please read further

Secretary-General's Message for 2013

This year’s observance of International Youth Day focuses on the issue of youth migration.  Of the annual total of some 214 million international migrants, young people constitute more than 10 per cent, yet too little is known about their struggles and experiences.
The reasons young people migrate are many.  Some are fleeing persecution, others are escaping economic hardship.  Some are alone, others part of a family – with parents, siblings and even children of their own.  Some have communities to go to, others must make new connections.  In transit and at their final destinations, many young migrants face equal or greater struggles, including racism, xenophobia, discrimination and human rights violations.  Young women, in particular, face the risk of sexual exploitation and abuse. 
Poverty, crowded and unsanitary living conditions and the challenges of finding decent employment are regular features of the migrant experience.  These challenges are exacerbated by the current global economic and financial crisis.  Migrants are also often accused by communities and politicians of taking jobs from local people, exposing them to further risk of discrimination.  In other cases, young people left behind by migrating parents face psychological and social challenges and greater vulnerability.
It is important to emphasize the positive contribution young migrants make to societies of origin, transit and destination – economically and by enriching the social and cultural fabric.  Most work hard to earn a living and improve their circumstances. 
The remittances they send to support families in their home countries are a major contributor to economies worldwide.  When they return home, young migrants often enhance development by applying skills and ideas acquired abroad.  And, in many cases, women are empowered through migration as they gain financial and social independence.
In October, the United Nations General Assembly will host the second High-Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development.  I urge Member States to consider youth migration.  Working with and for young people is one of my top priorities.  On this International Youth Day, I encourage Member States, youth-led organizations and other stakeholders to act to promote the rights of all young migrants and maximize the development potential of youth migration.

ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF: A New Day in the Achievement of Youths Rights Has Come

Talking about young people in the part of the world where I come is already  a sensitive issue and adding ‘rights’ which is another very explosive issue to this  makes  advocacy for the placing of youth rights at the heart of development  a very difficult but not an impossible task. Behind these words lies the fears, doubts, and optimism of a participant at the just ended International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)-Beyond 2014 Global youth Forum (GYF) which held from the 4^th to the 6^th December 2012.They are also the words that come to my mind whenever I think about this forum and the impact its outcomes will have on the future of young people and therefore our world as a whole.

                                         

The fruits of the optimism raised and the hopes re-enkindled by the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF not only in the young persons that attended this event but above all in the lives of the millions of young persons that are marginalized, down trodden, and persecuted because of their gender, age, political choices, and sexual orientation, will no doubt become reality as youths irrespective of their social status, religious beliefs, and gender have been empowered and energized by this forum.

With most of the recommendations from the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF urging governments, international bodies, and civil societies to recognize the rights of all young persons especially the marginalized, suffering and persecuted(the girl child, sexual minorities, rural dwellers, the uneducated) and  establish an enabling environment for the potentials of every young person to be unleashed  and his/her dreams fulfilled, the forum is ended but has opened an avenue for  youths to  claim what is theirs and take their places in decision making cycles in their various countries.

Enlightened, empowered, and inspired by the passion and enthusiasm I witnessed in Bali, the following words came to my mind in the evening of the 6^th of December as the forum ended: ‘What happens when it comes time to part? Well you know how when you’re listening to music from another room and you’re singing along, because it’s a tune you really love, when the door closes, or  a train passes, and  you can’t  hear the music anymore, but you sing along anyway?’ Just like the song described in this scene from the   movie, ‘Music from Another Room’, the journey towards achieving youths rights might have begun long ago, Bali marked a new beginning in this fight  for  the rights of young people in all their diversity to be recognized and respected in the society where they live.

ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF: A New Day in the Achievement of Youths Rights Has Come

Talking about young people in the part of the world where I come is already  a sensitive issue and adding ‘rights’ which is another very explosive issue to this  makes  advocacy for the placing of youth rights at the heart of development  a very difficult but not an impossible task. Behind these words lies the fears, doubts, and optimism of a participant at the just ended International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)-Beyond 2014 Global youth Forum (GYF) which held from the 4^th to the 6^th December 2012.They are also the words that come to my mind whenever I think about this forum and the impact its outcomes will have on the future of young people and therefore our world as a whole.

                                         

The fruits of the optimism raised and the hopes re-enkindled by the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF not only in the young persons that attended this event but above all in the lives of the millions of young persons that are marginalized, down trodden, and persecuted because of their gender, age, political choices, and sexual orientation, will no doubt become reality as youths irrespective of their social status, religious beliefs, and gender have been empowered and energized by this forum.

With most of the recommendations from the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF urging governments, international bodies, and civil societies to recognize the rights of all young persons especially the marginalized, suffering and persecuted(the girl child, sexual minorities, rural dwellers, the uneducated) and  establish an enabling environment for the potentials of every young person to be unleashed  and his/her dreams fulfilled, the forum is ended but has opened an avenue for  youths to  claim what is theirs and take their places in decision making cycles in their various countries.

Enlightened, empowered, and inspired by the passion and enthusiasm I witnessed in Bali, the following words came to my mind in the evening of the 6^th of December as the forum ended: ‘What happens when it comes time to part? Well you know how when you’re listening to music from another room and you’re singing along, because it’s a tune you really love, when the door closes, or  a train passes, and  you can’t  hear the music anymore, but you sing along anyway?’ Just like the song described in this scene from the   movie, ‘Music from Another Room’, the journey towards achieving youths rights might have begun long ago, Bali marked a new beginning in this fight  for  the rights of young people in all their diversity to be recognized and respected in the society where they live.

ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF: A New Day in the Achievement of Youths Rights Has Come

Talking about young people in the part of the world where I come is already  a sensitive issue and adding ‘rights’ which is another very explosive issue to this  makes  advocacy for the placing of youth rights at the heart of development  a very difficult but not an impossible task. Behind these words lies the fears, doubts, and optimism of a participant at the just ended International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)-Beyond 2014 Global youth Forum (GYF) which held from the 4^th to the 6^th December 2012.They are also the words that come to my mind whenever I think about this forum and the impact its outcomes will have on the future of young people and therefore our world as a whole.

                                         

The fruits of the optimism raised and the hopes re-enkindled by the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF not only in the young persons that attended this event but above all in the lives of the millions of young persons that are marginalized, down trodden, and persecuted because of their gender, age, political choices, and sexual orientation, will no doubt become reality as youths irrespective of their social status, religious beliefs, and gender have been empowered and energized by this forum.

With most of the recommendations from the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF urging governments, international bodies, and civil societies to recognize the rights of all young persons especially the marginalized, suffering and persecuted(the girl child, sexual minorities, rural dwellers, the uneducated) and  establish an enabling environment for the potentials of every young person to be unleashed  and his/her dreams fulfilled, the forum is ended but has opened an avenue for  youths to  claim what is theirs and take their places in decision making cycles in their various countries.

Enlightened, empowered, and inspired by the passion and enthusiasm I witnessed in Bali, the following words came to my mind in the evening of the 6^th of December as the forum ended: ‘What happens when it comes time to part? Well you know how when you’re listening to music from another room and you’re singing along, because it’s a tune you really love, when the door closes, or  a train passes, and  you can’t  hear the music anymore, but you sing along anyway?’ Just like the song described in this scene from the   movie, ‘Music from Another Room’, the journey towards achieving youths rights might have begun long ago, Bali marked a new beginning in this fight  for  the rights of young people in all their diversity to be recognized and respected in the society where they live.

ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF: A New Day in the Achievement of Youths Rights Has Come

Talking about young people in the part of the world where I come is already  a sensitive issue and adding ‘rights’ which is another very explosive issue to this  makes  advocacy for the placing of youth rights at the heart of development  a very difficult but not an impossible task. Behind these words lies the fears, doubts, and optimism of a participant at the just ended International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)-Beyond 2014 Global youth Forum (GYF) which held from the 4^th to the 6^th December 2012.They are also the words that come to my mind whenever I think about this forum and the impact its outcomes will have on the future of young people and therefore our world as a whole.

                                         

The fruits of the optimism raised and the hopes re-enkindled by the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF not only in the young persons that attended this event but above all in the lives of the millions of young persons that are marginalized, down trodden, and persecuted because of their gender, age, political choices, and sexual orientation, will no doubt become reality as youths irrespective of their social status, religious beliefs, and gender have been empowered and energized by this forum.

With most of the recommendations from the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF urging governments, international bodies, and civil societies to recognize the rights of all young persons especially the marginalized, suffering and persecuted(the girl child, sexual minorities, rural dwellers, the uneducated) and  establish an enabling environment for the potentials of every young person to be unleashed  and his/her dreams fulfilled, the forum is ended but has opened an avenue for  youths to  claim what is theirs and take their places in decision making cycles in their various countries.

Enlightened, empowered, and inspired by the passion and enthusiasm I witnessed in Bali, the following words came to my mind in the evening of the 6^th of December as the forum ended: ‘What happens when it comes time to part? Well you know how when you’re listening to music from another room and you’re singing along, because it’s a tune you really love, when the door closes, or  a train passes, and  you can’t  hear the music anymore, but you sing along anyway?’ Just like the song described in this scene from the   movie, ‘Music from Another Room’, the journey towards achieving youths rights might have begun long ago, Bali marked a new beginning in this fight  for  the rights of young people in all their diversity to be recognized and respected in the society where they live.

ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF: A New Day in the Achievement of Youths Rights Has Come

Talking about young people in the part of the world where I come is already  a sensitive issue and adding ‘rights’ which is another very explosive issue to this  makes  advocacy for the placing of youth rights at the heart of development  a very difficult but not an impossible task. Behind these words lies the fears, doubts, and optimism of a participant at the just ended International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)-Beyond 2014 Global youth Forum (GYF) which held from the 4^th to the 6^th December 2012.They are also the words that come to my mind whenever I think about this forum and the impact its outcomes will have on the future of young people and therefore our world as a whole.

                                         

The fruits of the optimism raised and the hopes re-enkindled by the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF not only in the young persons that attended this event but above all in the lives of the millions of young persons that are marginalized, down trodden, and persecuted because of their gender, age, political choices, and sexual orientation, will no doubt become reality as youths irrespective of their social status, religious beliefs, and gender have been empowered and energized by this forum.

With most of the recommendations from the ICPD-Beyond 2014 GYF urging governments, international bodies, and civil societies to recognize the rights of all young persons especially the marginalized, suffering and persecuted(the girl child, sexual minorities, rural dwellers, the uneducated) and  establish an enabling environment for the potentials of every young person to be unleashed  and his/her dreams fulfilled, the forum is ended but has opened an avenue for  youths to  claim what is theirs and take their places in decision making cycles in their various countries.

Enlightened, empowered, and inspired by the passion and enthusiasm I witnessed in Bali, the following words came to my mind in the evening of the 6^th of December as the forum ended: ‘What happens when it comes time to part? Well you know how when you’re listening to music from another room and you’re singing along, because it’s a tune you really love, when the door closes, or  a train passes, and  you can’t  hear the music anymore, but you sing along anyway?’ Just like the song described in this scene from the   movie, ‘Music from Another Room’, the journey towards achieving youths rights might have begun long ago, Bali marked a new beginning in this fight  for  the rights of young people in all their diversity to be recognized and respected in the society where they live.