What is the “Youth Delegate” Program at the United Nations?
The United Nations Youth Delegate Program is the primary tool available to United Nations member states for the implementation of the United Nations World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY) adopted in 1985. Through the UNYDP, each member state has the opportunity to include youth delegates within their respective diplomatic missions, allowing them to represent and promote the interests of young people from their country during the regular session of the General Assembly as well as at major UN conferences such as the Commission for Social Development (CSocD), Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), and the ECOSOC Youth Forum.
In countries where the UNYDP is active, designated delegates become spokespeople for the requests and proposals of their peers, advocating for the implementation and development of national and international policies in favor of the younger generations. Additionally, “Youth Delegates” promote the dissemination of United Nations values and activities among the youth, stimulating them to similarly spread the principles and objectives of the Organization.
The attention and commitment of the United Nations to urge states to implement effective and achievable actions for and with young people are always constant. A significant example is the establishment in 2013 of a Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Youth Issues, the adoption in 2015 of Security Council Resolution 2250 on “Youth, Peace and Security,” the recognition of the role of youth with the adoption of the Youth2030 Strategy, which places them at the center of present and future strategies, and which led to the establishment in 2022 of the UN Youth Office in New York.
