International Youth Day is being celebrated on Wednesday to highlight the ways in which the engagement of young people at local, national and global levels is enriching national and multilateral institutions.
The theme of this year is “Youth Engagement for Global Action”. International Youth Day gives an opportunity to celebrate and mainstream young peoples’ voices, actions and initiatives, as well as meaningful, universal and equitable engagement.
The commemoration this year by United Nations will take the form of a discussion hosted by youth, together with independently organised commemorations around the world that recognise the importance of youth participation in political, economic and social life.
International Youth Day 2020: Key Points
Check out some key points on International Youth Day 2020 and also on this year’s theme Youth Engagement for Global Action
- International Youth Day is a dedicated holiday to the youths of the United Nations. The day is generally observed by 18 countries on many dates throughout the year.
- Celebrations of youth day are different in different countries. Many countries organize youth conferences on issues such as education and employment.
- Other activities in various countries that celebrate the day include concerts promoting the world’s youth, as well as various sporting events, parades, and mobile exhibitions that showcase young people’s achievements.
- United Nations, the UN has planned various activities to celebrate the day that includes concerts, workshops, cultural events and meetings to engage the youth.
- The events will be done with a podcast-style discussion that will be hosted by the youth for the youth.
- The discussions as per the theme would be on how the engagement of youth is enriching local, national, and global institutions and political processes.
Notably, Pakistan has one of the largest populations of young people in the world which has a large impact on human development. It is currently one of the youngest countries in the world and the second youngest in the South Asian region after Afghanistan, with 64 percent of the population below the age of 30, and 29 percent is between the ages of 15-29 years.