Citizen’s Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh in collaboration with ASEAN Youth Forum, ChildFund International, Plan International Asia-Pacific, UNDP in Asia and the Pacific and Youth for Change Bangladesh is organising a Virual Side Event titled “NextGen Partnerships: Empowering Youth to accelerate SDG delivery” as part of the 12th Asia-Pacific Forum for Sustainable Development on Thursday, 27 February 2025, at 3.45 pm (Bangladesh Time). (4.45 pm, Bangkok Time)
Background
As we fast approach the 2030 Agenda deadline, the world continues to remain offtrack on several SDGs like achieving gender equality, inclusive health access and climate justice. A lack of meaningful, inclusive multi-stakeholder partnerships and shrinking civic spaces have exacerbated these gaps in progress. They have also served to constrain freedom of association and political participation — especially for youths. As such, there are limited spaces for youths to meaningfully engage in national development and political processes. Without which, Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) across countries continue to inadequately capture youths’ fresh perspectives, innovative solutions and contributions to powering SDG progress.
This session, a collaboration of six organisations across the Asia-Pacific region, addresses the urgent need to protect and expand civic spaces, foster inclusive partnerships, and ensure meaningful youth engagement in national development and political processes.
Youth leaders from varying SDG areas—such as climate justice, indigenous and minority rights, and gender equality—will share their experiences through a storytelling approach. The session will highlight barriers and opportunities for youth-led organisations to shape inclusive development policies and identify actionable steps for governments, international development stakeholders, and others to empower youth-led partnerships and accelerate SDG progress.
Key Questions and Outcomes
The side event will focus on the pivotal role of civic spaces (SDG 16) in fostering inclusive, multistakeholder partnerships (SDG 17) with youth-led organisations to address gender equality (SDG 5) and climate action (SDG 13). This side event will examine the following key guiding questions:
- What are the challenges that youth-led organisations have experienced as regards partnership with other sectors (including government and the private sector) in SDG efforts?
- What are the specific obstacles that prevent youth-led organisations to collaborate with stakeholders across SDGs—particularly in governance, climate justice, and gender equality—and how can these be addressed?
- Based on practical experiences, how can multi-stakeholder partnerships with youth-led organisations protect and expand civic spaces?
- To what extent are youth voices currently reflected in Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), particularly for SDGs 5 and 17)? What measures are necessary to ensure these contributions are meaningfully incorporated?
As such, the event aims to spotlight the varying approaches to protecting and expanding civic spaces to scale up contributions of youth-led organisations to accelerate SDG delivery. The session will bring together a gender- and country-diverse lineup of speakers to explore youth contributions to SDG progress. At the conclusion of this session, participants should have an improved understanding of the challenges and successes of supporting youth-led organisations contributions to SDG delivery across countries in Asia, highlighting actionable learnings. This session will also serve as an opportunity to further a network of youth leaders and youth-led organisations with multi-stakeholders to foster regional collaborating and peer learning, in the context of accelerating SDG delivery.
Leave A Comment