Gov’t Engages Youth Ahead of Summit of the Future

The Government of Jamaica brought young people together for meaningful discussion on the future they want to see at a National Youth Dialogue on the Summit of the Future.

The event, held on Friday (August 16) at the Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston and online, was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, the Ministry of Education and Youth, and the United Nations (UN) in Jamaica.

It provided an opportunity for students and youth leaders, including persons in rural communities, across the Diaspora as well as those with disabilities, to engage with policy and decision makers from the Government and UN system, to help craft and present their vision for the future to national and global leaders.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, in her address, said the partners are “pleased that we’ve been able to create this opportunity to listen to the voices of our young people – voices of the present and indeed voices of the future – as we move closer to the 79th session of the UN General Assembly [in September] and more particularly, to the Summit of the Future, which will precede it.”

Senator Johnson Smith said the Summit of the Future will bring together Heads of States and Governments with a common goal of international peace and security, supported by a strong multilateral system.

It will accelerate efforts to meet existing international commitments and take concrete steps to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities.

“Leaders will discuss achieving sustainable development in spite of the many challenges that face our world. Jamaica will be participating and advocating in particular on the challenges faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and other developing countries, issues including climate change, climate financing and financing for development,” Senator Johnson Smith pointed out.

Jamaica and the Kingdom of the Netherlands are spearheading negotiations on a UN Declaration on Future Generations, which will be annexed to an action-oriented outcome document called the ‘Pact for the Future.’ Member States will sign off on the Pact during the Summit.

Youth voices are an important part of the process in adopting a strong Declaration and Pact.

The draft Declaration on Future Generations acknowledges that children and young people are agents of change, and that intergenerational dialogue/engagement is needed and should be taken into account in policy and decision-making processes to safeguard the needs and interests of future generations.

The Minister noted that the world’s young people collectively form an extremely important stakeholder grouping, noting that while many globally are marginalised, living in circumstances of war and extreme vulnerability, as a global demographic they are more empowered than they have ever been before.

She said that the UN recognises that young people must play a more active role in helping to create the world in which “we all live” and to make it better to overcome complex crises.

“I think it bears emphasis that your participation, your perspectives are needed more than ever on progress and achievement of the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development in achieving in short, our Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Jamaica, therefore, commends the UN for developing a youth strategy, which prioritises engagement, participation and advocacy,” Senator Johnson Smith said.

“But as a whole, however, in the broader context of our participation…it has been an absolute honour for Jamaica to co-facilitate the intergovernmental process for the Declaration on Future Generations,” she added.

Senator Johnson Smith encouraged the young people to share their views and inputs towards the implementation of the Pact for the Future and the Declaration on Future Generations.

“We encourage you through this dialogue and otherwise, to take full advantage of the opportunity to have your voices heard,” she said.