UN-HABITAT and Youth
According to UN-HABITAT’s State of the World’s Cities Report 2006/7, the year 2007
will mark a turning point in human history - the urban population will for the first time
equal the world’s rural population and the number of slum dwellers in the world cross the
one billion mark. One in every three city residents will live in inadequate housing with no
or few basic services. The global urban population has quadrupled since 1950, and cities
of the developing world now account for over 90 per cent of the world’s urban growth.
Current trends predict the number of urban dwellers will keep rising, reaching almost 5
billion by 2030. Cities hold tremendous potential, they are the engines of economic and
social development as well as the main source of countries’ jobs. However, cities today
can also generate and intensify social exclusion, denying the benefits of urban life to poor
youth. Africa’s urban population is forecast to double from 295 million in 2000 to 590
million in 2020 – a growth rate consistent with the most rapid urban growth rates in the
world.
Globally, young people aged 15-24 years represent 18 per cent of the world's population.
Africa houses the largest segment of young people. Available estimates show that in most
African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Zambia the youth and
children aged 25 years and below constitute about or over 70 per cent of the population.
It is imperative that youth be recognized and supported as leaders within their own
communities.
By 2020, one half of Africa’s population will be living in cities. In many cities around the
continent, more than 50 per cent of inhabitants are under the age of 19.2. The lives of
young people, in Sub-Saharan Africa are blighted by a combination of intense human
injustice and disasters. In addition, youth have over the past 20 years been particularly
affected by growing urban poverty, child trafficking, sexual exploitation, high
unemployment, and the growing phenomenon of street children. Crime and violence, the
breakdown of family life, environmental degradation, worsening health conditions and
the transmission of infectious diseases, and the worsening HIV/AIDS pandemic also add
to the list.
The Third Session of the World Urban Forum in Vancouver, Canada in June 2006,
highlighted the leadership that youth are currently demonstrating on key urban issues
such as Information Communication Technologies, HIV/AIDS and employment. There is
urgent need for young people to be encouraged and supported to take leadership roles and
be empowered to participate in decisions affecting their lives. Young people are also
adversely affected by the impact of globalisation on values and culture, which in some
cases is rapidly destroying local cultural ties and affiliations as well as traditional intergenerational ties.
The Global Partnership Initiative on Urban Youth Development in Africa
Young people are asking that their voices be heard, that their issues be addressed and that
their roles be recognised. Rather than being viewed as objects of grooming for future
citizens, they want to be accepted as partners in development, in helping chart and shape
the future. This is the backdrop to the Global Partnership Initiative for Urban Youth in
Africa launched by UN-HABITAT at the Second World Urban Forum in 2004.
The Global Partnership Initiative on Urban Youth Development in Africa is an initiative
of UN-HABITAT in collaboration with selected cities globally. The agency regards
young people as partners in building a better world and promotes their empowerment
through effective and meaningful participation in decision-making. Adopted by 171
countries at the 1996 City Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, the Habitat Agenda recommends
a participatory approach to promote employment, training, and crime prevention. It also
stresses the role of young people in the alleviation of poverty and inequality.
In May 2003, the UN-HABITAT Governing Council adopted a resolution on the
engagement of youth in the work of UN-HABITAT. Resolution GC19/13 directs the
Executive Director to “ensure the active participation of UN-HABITAT in the Secretary
General’s initiative on youth employment; as well as to develop a Global Partnership
Initiative on Urban Youth Development in Africa, in partnership with other relevant
United Nations agencies, multilateral institutions and private foundations in the context
of New Partnership for Africa’s Development”. The Global Partnership Initiative is
important because it seeks to integrate the Millennium Development Goals with
development programmes at the city level focusing on and working with urban youth in
Africa.
Consistent with a number of the Millennium Development Goals including Goal 7 Target
11 and Goal 8 Target 164, the youth initiative must be seen as an integrated effort to
fulfill the goals and their targets. The youth initiative is also consistent with UN
HABITAT’s global campaigns for secure tenure and urban governance, and as such is
instrumental in fulfilling the objectives of these campaigns.
The Global Partnership Strategies include the creation of urban-based youth resource
centres that directly support youth-led development issues, such as One Stop Youth
Centres; training youth as peace builders by involving them in violence prevention
strategies; and research and policy development that supports youth-led development.
The One Stop Youth Centres are innovative and ground-breaking spaces that provide a
meeting place for young people to come together to access information and resources
critical to enabling youth-led development programmes and projects.
UN-HABITAT incorporating young people
The objective of the UN-HABITAT Youth Strategy for Enhanced Engagement is to
present an integrated approach to urban youth development, which will guide the
operational activities of the agency when working with youth. It will provide a road map
for the promotion of urban youth empowerment. UN-HABITAT actively promotes the
implementation of youth programmes, working directly with youth-led groups. The
agency works closely with all its divisions, branches and the regional offices in order to
promote high quality and continuous engagement of partners in incorporating youth
issues in the development agenda.
UN-HABITAT agencies recognize young people as key stakeholders and active
participants in the future of human settlements. Young people need acknowledgment,
guidance, resources and training in order to reach their full potential. UN-HABITAT
initiates and fosters inter-agency and partnerships with youth organizations working
towards the mainstreaming of youth issues.
UN-HABITAT urban poverty reduction strategies include; sustainable urban
development, adequate shelter for all, improvement in the lives of slum dwellers, access
to safe water and sanitation, social inclusion, environmental protection and various
human rights. The expanded strategic vision gives attention to knowledge management,
the financing of housing and human settlements and to strategic partnerships.
The UN Millennium Declaration and its Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight goals that all 191 United Nations member
states have agreed to try to achieve by the year 2015. The United Nations Millennium
Declaration, signed in September 2000, commits the states to achieving these goals.
The Millennium Development Goals recognize that slums are not anomalies of an urban
landscape but rather, in many countries, slums house large proportions of the urban
population and cannot be ignored. UN-HABITAT's vision is directly related to the United
Nations Millennium Declaration, focusing on the goals of member States to improve the
lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by the year 2020 (Target 11, Goal No. 7), and
Target 10 which calls for the reduction by half of the number of people without
sustainable access to safe drinking water. This is a major developmental challenge that
requires long-term political commitment, well-coordinated human resources and a
mobilization of funds to finance these goals.
A Policy Dialogue on Youth, Children and Urban Governance has been developed to
support efforts in enhancing the role of cities and youth organization networks in
addressing the particular needs of the youth in the context of good governance. This
policy paper forms part of UN-HABITAT’S Global Campaign on Urban Governance and
stimulates and promotes dialogue and action by outlining the need for giving children and
youth a role in urban governance.
Intended outcomes of these youth-focused initiatives
In Employment and Capacity Building: replicable systems for vocational training and
apprenticeships should be in place with increased employment opportunities, gender and
age mainstreaming, new employment ideas, and slum upgrading.
In Crime Prevention: there should be progress on crime, delinquency prevention and
support to the empowerment of youth in difficult circumstances.
In Urban Governance: young people should be active participants in issues of
governance.