Important: Lessons learned from CSD...input into Secretary General report--Deadline 31 December 2012

Dear Youth and Children Major Group,

As you may know, last Friday, the Second Committee of the GA adopted the resolution "Implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development and of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (A//C.2/67/L.45)" in which paragraph 3 "requests the Secretary-General to submit a focused and concise report on lessons learned from the Commission, compiling relevant existing information in consultation with Member States and benefiting from the inputs of major groups and other stakeholders, to inform the negotiations".


This means that they want each Major Group to provide some input before Sunday, 30th December 2012 on the following: 

- Promoting balanced integration of economic, social and environmental dimensions;
- Allowing the review of progress in implementing sustainable development commitments;
- Providing policy guidance at all levels;
- Promoting implementation of sustainable development at all levels;
- Enhancing coherence, coordination and cooperation at all levels and within UN system;
- Advancing sustainable development issues in other international, regional and national for a;
- Allowing the science-policy interface;
- Reaching action oriented agreement in an effective way;
- Promoting full and effective participation of all countries;
- Enhancing engagement of the UN system, Major Groups and other relevant stakeholders;
- Effective use of meetings, including preparatory process;
- Mobilizing adequate secretariat support.

This Report will impact the modality and working of the high level political forum which will be replacing the CSD cycle....incase you don't know what the CSD cycle is....you can find out more on uncsdchildrenyouth.org or http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/

UN Adviser Proposes Four Pillars for Post-2015 Goals

Jeffrey Sachs, Special Adviser to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), shared his perspective on the post-2015 development agenda in an event at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). Sachs stressed that poverty cannot be alleviated without addressing environmental concerns, and proposed four pillars for a set of post-2015 development goals.

At the event, held in London, UK, on 10 December 2012, and broadcast live on the ODI website, Sachs discussed the relationship between the Secretary-General’s High Level Panel (HLP) on the Post-2015 Agenda, which will review the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and assess what should come next, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the establishment of which was endorsed at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), and which will be developed through an inter-governmental process. Sachs described the debates over these two processes - whether they should remain distinct or be integrated - and said keeping them apart would be “devastating to both agendas.”

Sachs proposed four pillars for a set of post-2015 goals, to: end poverty in all its forms; ensure social inclusion; address the environmental agenda, including biodiversity, climate change and oceans; and governance to support the first three goals. He recommended that governance objectives focus on both the public and corporate sectors. Sachs said the goals' language should be clear and understandable at a sixth-grade level.

Participants asked questions on, inter alia: including security as a dimension; improving integration of both sustainable development and the post-2015 and SDG processes; and including a goal on responses to crises. In response to a question on the role of developed countries, Sachs called for goals that apply to all countries, noting that even rich countries face sustainable development challenges and experience inequality. In response to a question on lessons learned, Sachs said measurement and baseline data was a challenge for the MDGs, and recommended eliminating time lags in monitoring and promoting real-time monitoring. He concluded that a robust report from the HLP and the Secretary-General to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) could promote an integrated approach that could help the two tracks come together

UNEP Seeks Input on Civil Society Engagement Mechanisms

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) is soliciting the input of Major Groups and Other Stakeholders (MGS) on its current engagement system and how it can be improved to better respond to the needs of stakeholders.

According to UNEP, MGS input, which can be offered via an online survey until 31 December 2012, will influence its response to the call for it to explore "new mechanisms to promote transparency and the effective engagement of society," which was contained in the outcome document of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).

The survey's objectives, UNEP notes, are: to identify gaps in its current engagement system; to document best practice in other multilateral organizations; and to identify potential new mechanisms it can pursue to ensure civil society engagement and participation. The survey covers seven areas: current arrangements for MGS participation in UNEP policy and programmatic work; rules and procedures for MGS participation in UNEP work; access to information in UNEP; the current approach of nine Major Groups; the state of MGS participation at the programmatic level in UNEP work; and how modern information and communication technology (ICT) may improve public participation in UNEP.

Agenda 21 defines the nine Major Groups as: Business and Industry; Children and Youth; Farmers; Indigenous People and their Communities; Local Authorities; Non-governmental organizations; Women; Workers and Trade Unions; and the Scientific and Technological Community. By "other stakeholders" UNEP refers to any civil society organization that does not easily fit under one of the existing Major Group categories.

Click Here

http://obsurvey.com/S2.aspx?id=1709BF46-57AF-41C0-A894-5F6DF3EAAFEA

Day 02 - Asia Pacific Civil Society Regional Consultation Meeting 2012

On the second day we mainly focused on "What is role civil society and what we need from UNEP". One of the main outcome of Rio+20, specifically on IFSD was to strengthing the UNEP system. In February 2013 In conjunction with its upcoming twenty-seventh session of the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GC/GMEF) to be held from 18th - 22nd February 2013 in Nairobi, Kenya, UNEP is organising the fourteenth Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum (GMGSF-14) from 16th -17th February 2013 in Nairobi.

The objective of the Forum will be to facilitate preparations of major groups and stakeholders towards the GC27/GMEF which will hold ministerial-level consultations on emerging policy issues under the following themes: “Implementing Rio+20: A strengthened environmental pillar of sustainable development”, and “Implementing a green economy as an important tool for achieving sustainable development”. Among other issues, the Forum will provide an opportunity for a multi-stakeholders dialogue, as part of the implementation of the Rio+20 Outcome document, on new models and mechanisms to promote transparency and effective engagement of civil society in the work of UNEP; the role and opportunities for involvement of civil society in the post-Rio+20 processes and the post-2015 development agenda.

The participants divided in to several subgroups and intensely discussed some of the key points under each sections. At the end of subgroup consultations each group came with 3 Major recommendations for the Nirobi Ministerial meetings.

The sub groups were as follows.

Group 1: Rio+20 Outcomes and Implementation Asia Pacific

Group 2: Rio+20 and Principle 10

Group 3: UN Post-2015 Agenda

Group 4: Green Economy and Sustainable Consumption and Production

Group 5: International Environmental Governance

Group 6: Chemical Waste and Management

Group 7: Regional Priority Issues

The top three recommendations were presented by the respective facilitators and a key drafting committee was established to compile the recommendations to work on it. The draft CSO compiled document was adopted by the Civil Society representatives at the end two days CSO Intersessional consultations.


The closing remarks was presented by Dr. Madhav Karki, Deputy Director General, ICIMOD . He stressed about the way forward of Rio+20, specially on Means of Implementations and "Winning and Loosing Parties" of Rio+20. Oceans and Mountains were two of them, which was highly discussed and agreed in Rio De Jeniro City in last June.

Launch of Post-2015 Thematic Consultation onEnvironmental Sustainability

Launch of Post-2015 Thematic Consultation onEnvironmental Sustainability

UNDP and UNEP are pleased to announce the launch of the post-2015 global consultation on environmental sustainability. This is one of a series of national and global (thematic) consultations convened by the United Nations Development Group to help shape the post-2015 development agenda.

This is an open dialogue for a multitude of voices to stimulate creative and innovative thinking on how we can put global development on a more environmentally sustainable path that can lead us to the world we want. In developing the post-2015 development agenda the world now has the opportunity to turn these innovative ideas into solutions that can shape the future.

In this first phase of the global consultation on environmental sustainability - now until January - we invite you to propose topics and questions that you think should be among the priorities for further exploration. You can do this by responding to the call for discussion notes and sharing your experiences and thinking on the online platform.

Early in 2013 the consultation will bring together leading thinkers in a meeting to review the submissions from the first phase of the consultation. Some of those who submit Discussion Notes may be invited to participate in this meeting. This meeting aims to select from and refine the identified topics for a more focused in-depth online discussion in a second phase of the consultation during February and March. A summary report will be an input to the High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda (HLP), as well as to the inter-governmental debate on the post-2015 development agenda starting with the 2013 UN General Assembly.

All are welcome to join this consultation. Help us spread the word to civil society, academia, private sector, governments, the UN system, and beyond. Now is the time to get involved to help shape the global development agenda.

Click here to join www.worldwewant2015.org/sustainability.

In addition to this thematic consultation on environmental sustainability there are other opportunities to engage in Post-2015 consultations through global, thematic and national processes. Please visit www.worldwewant2015.org for more information.

Kathmandu Declaration on the Implementation of Rio+20 Outcomes Document

Asia – Pacific Major Groups and Stakeholders Regional Consultation Meeting

Kathmandu Declaration on the Implementation of Rio+20 Outcomes Document

51 participants from 27 countries in Asia and the Pacific attended the Asia – Pacific Major Group and Stakeholder Regional Consultation Meeting held at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in Kathmandu, Nepal from 22 – 23 November 2012. The participants adopted this declaration as an important input to the Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum to be held in Nairobi 16-17 February 2013. Happy to be a part of such a productive meeting representing Major Group of Children and youth .

Regional priority issues

The Asia-Pacific region faces some common challenges to achieving sustainable development, such as land-grabbing and the adverse impacts of climate change, air pollution and extractive industries. Others like marine pollution and over-fishing are specific to the subregions of Pacific and South Asia. To overcome these challenges, it is vital to facilitate (i) public access to information, decision-making and justice, (ii) greater equity in wealth, resources and power between and within countries, rich and poor, and men and women, (iii) development and implementation of free prior-informed consent procedures, (iv) increased sub-regional and regional collaboration on sustainable management of natural resources; (v) stronger accountability and transparency mechanisms for the private sector, particularly in extractive industries, (vi) methods to halt land-grabbing and forced evictions by both the private sector and governments, and (vii) wider engagement of MGSs and non-state actors in sustainable development governance and implementation.

Role of MGS in Rio+20 outcome implementation

Civil society organisations (CSOs) will play an increasingly important role in facilitating Rio+20 outcomes. It is vital to advance and enhance the institutionalization of MGSs engagement in the Rio+20 follow up processes such as the planned High level Political Forum, Open Working Groups, the Multi-stakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) and other current and emerging mechanisms.

Sustainable Development Goals and the Post 2015 Development Agenda

In devising Sustainable Development Goals beyond 2015, a comprehensive approach is needed that shifts global policy-making from existing models to the incorporation of all four pillars of development: environmental, economic, cultural and social rights. Efforts should be made to achieve coherence and synergy between the post-2015 and SDG processes as well as other multilateral processes that have a major bearing on sustainable development. It is particularly important to utilise a human- rights based approach by fully recognizing and integrating international standards on equality and non discrimination while addressing root causes of poverty. Peace, security, democracy and justice are essential foundations for achieving sustainable development and must be a core part of the post-2015 framework

Institutional framework for sustainable development

While Asia and Pacific States have developed an increasing number of laws and become party to relevant international agreements, compliance with such laws, norms and standards is still lacking. A time-bound implementation plan needs to be developed and reinforced. Periodic review mechanisms on compliance should be introduced. The establishment of an independent ombudsman for future generations must be pursued along with additional steps to strengthen international environmental governance as reflected in the Rio+20 outcome document paragraph 88 including sub-paragraphs a-h.

Green economies in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication

Green economies in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication must ensure gender equality; human well-being; environmental risk reduction; ecosystem and biodiversity conservation; human rights protection; opportunities of decent work; safeguards for the needs of marginalized and vulnerable groups including indigenous peoples; food and energy security and animal welfare.

Any disguised and distorting trading measures under the pretext of green economies should not be permitted. Green economies should become synergistic with pursuit of sustainable development goals and utilize UN mechanisms, including the future high level political forum, to track country level progress.

Sustainable consumption and production

The 10 Year Framework of Programmes for Sustainable Consumption and Production must be implemented with enhanced involvement of MGSs. Countries must become parties to all the international agreements on chemical and waste management while implementing UNEP’s guidelines on safe chemical and waste management. UNEP should develop and facililtate guidelines on zero waste. UNEP must reinforce the implementation of guidelines on agrichemicals throughout their whole life cycle. Further strengthening UNEP’s work on the Bali Guidelines, which are voluntary, would lead to more transparent implementation of the 10YFP.

Public participation and access to information

Access to information, decision- making and justice is essential for achieving sustainable development and thus must be a core principle of the Sustainable Development Goals. In compliance with Paragraph 99 of the Rio+20 outcome document, we call for the establishment of an adequately-funded Asia–Pacific Convention on Principle 10 to ensure that the needs of all MGs are met. Such a proposed regional convention should balance fairly the needs and interests of the various vulnerable groups, and include commitments fromr governments and private sectors. The appropriate agency to initiate this Principle 10 Regional Convention would be the UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (UNEP-ROAP), in collaboration with other relevant organisations, partners and regions.

Financing

Both conventional and innovative approaches must be more vigorously pursued to generate incentives and mobilise funds for achieving sustainable development. Perverse incentives such as fossil fuels subsidies, subsidies for commercial fishing vessels and agribusiness should be eliminated with due consideration to their impact on low-income groups. Other measures should be put in place such as taxes on international financial transactions, on arms trade, on shipping and carbon emissions designed in a progressive manner.

Asia – Pacific CSO mechanism

Civil society requires more institutionalized and regularized policy dialogue forums. Regional and subregional CSO mechanisms should be refined and strengthened with more transparent, inclusive, democratic and effective operational modalities. To enable MGS to conduct more effective and substantive policy dialogues and implementation support, it is vital to seek more financial support and capacity building from UNEP Headquarters and donor countries/agencies We also call for dialogues with ministers and government decision makers as well as business executives to discuss and pursue strategies and forge effective partnerships for truly sustainable development.

ICPD Global Youth Forum: Embracing the Voice of Young People

Dream, believe and make it happen" – Inspirational words from celebrated Indonesian singer Agnes Monica which set the tone for the opening of the ICPD Global Youth Forum, which began in Bali on December 4. Hundreds of youth delegates from across the globe and thousands more online are participating in three days of sharing their voices and their vision on the future they want.

The Forum highlights five pillars of youth-related issues including health, education, employment, youth rights and well-being, and civic participation and is part of an UN-mandated review of progress on the goals set out in the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki moon sent a message of support to the conference, reinforcing the potential and passion of young people as, "the front line of the change around the world". The Secretary-General identified youth empowerment as one of his top priorities over the next five years.

According to UNFPA Executive Director, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin: "Being young is about being invincible; being young is about shaping your life, shaping yourself and believing in yourself, it is about living your dreams. I believe the world will be a better place if we allow young people to determine their own lives and to be able to make choices about that life."

The three-day Forum, co-hosted by the Indonesian Government and the UN Population Fund, UNFPA, generated recommendations on health, education, employment, families, youth rights, civic participation, well-being including sexuality. The recommendations include calls for governments to:

• Provide , monitor and evaluate universal access to a basic package of youth-friendly health services (including mental healthcare and sexual and reproductive health services) that are high quality, integrated, equitable, comprehensive and affordable

• Ensure universal access to free, quality comprehensive education at all levels, and allocate sufficient funds to achieve universal access to comprehensive education.

• Eliminate harmful traditional practices (such as forced circumcision and genital mutilation, early and forced marriage, gender-based violence and violence against women.

• Guarantee an environment free from psychological, physical and sexual violence, including gender based violence and bullying in the home, school, workplace and community.

• Develop and strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships to collect, analyze, use and disseminate reliable, disaggregated, qualitative and quantitative youth data to support evidence-based national youth health policies and programmes.

• Prioritize creation of jobs and a skilled workforce by increased investment, along with the private sector, in programmes that foster youth entrepreneurship and job training including paid internships.

• Ensure equal and equitable access to decent work free from discrimination, respectful of diversity and promoting human development for all young people, particularly young women with children and other marginalized groups.

The Forum also called upon the United Nations to “urgently appoint a Special Advisor on Youth who is a young person”.

The final recommendations from the Forum will be included in a UN Secretary-General report to the General Assembly in 2014 and will feed into discussions on UN development goals for the next 20 years.

The first plenary session focused on Staying Healthy and began with a keynote address from Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin. Other speakers included Indonesia's Minister of Health Dr. Nafsiah Mboi and Meredith Waters, from Advocates for Youth representing the voice of young people. The second plenary session explored the issue of 'Comprehensive Education' and focused on the issues of relevance, quality and inclusiveness of education.

Each plenary is followed by a series of World Cafe sessions where participants are able to discuss and debate the issues in more detail and agree on recommendations which will be incorporated into the final outcome document to be produced at the end of the Forum. Recommendations from the outcome document will go directly into a UN Secretary-General report, which will be presented to the General Assembly and will help define development priorities for the next 20 years. 

1 Bali Global Youth Forum Declaration 1

The conference was held in Bali, Indonesia, from 4-6 December 2012 in the context of the review and follow up to the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development beyond 2014 in order to produce recommended actions for the outcome report of the review and for the post-2015 United Nations development agenda, as well as to generate a new consensus on putting youth rights at the heart of development.
The conference was preceded by extensive interaction at national and global levels on the themes of staying healthy; comprehensive education; families, youth-rights and well-being, including sexuality;
1 Outcome of the Bali Global Youth Forum of United Nations Member States, youth groups, individual youth participants, non-governmental organizations, private sector institutions and other stakeholders, as well as thousands of virtual participants.

2 transition to decent work; and leadership and meaningful participation.

A dedicated web and mobile platform will provide the means for continued conversations on issues of youth rights, well-being and development in order to effectively influence global and national policies and programmes that impact young people.
Final Recommendations from Thematic Session 1: Staying Healthy
Ensuring accountability, transparency and the need for implementation as a cross cutting theme across all recommendations, with special focus particularly on LGBTQI, MSM, drug users, refugees, rural populations, out-of-school, sex workers, indigenous, afro-descendant populations, migrants, young people in conflict and emergency situations, empowering young women and adolescent girls, persons with disabilities, young people living with HIV and AIDS.
Data
Governments should develop and strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships with private sector, civil society and young people, in collecting, analyzing, using and disseminating periodic, reliable,
qualitative and quantitative output and outcomes-oriented youth health data, which is disaggregated by age (10-14, 15-19, 20-24), gender, sex and other factors and supports evidence-based policies and programmes.

3 Invest in building the capacity of young people to collect and validate data, ensuring youth-led and youth-friendly monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in the design, planning and implementation of national policies and programmes.
Enabling environments
Governments should work in partnership with adolescents and youth, media, religious leaders and the private sector to create enabling environments that are conducive to ensuring young people have access to comprehensive affordable health services that are free from coercion, discrimination, violence and stigma – and provide for basic needs through increased funding, improved legislation and policies, accessible and affordable services.
Governments should also ensure that young people have meaningful participation in the allocation of resources for health at the local and national levels, and the creation of policies that respect, protect and fulfill human rights.
Governments address harmful traditional practices (such as forced circumcision and genital mutilation, early and forced marriage, gender-based violence and violence against women).
Education
International community including governments, NGOs, private sector and civil society must establish partnerships to make adolescents and youth aware of their rights to staying healthy through formal and non-formal education.

4. To provide non-discriminatory, non-judgmental, rights-based, age appropriate, gender-sensitive health education including youth-friendly, evidence based comprehensive sexuality education that is context specific.
Access to health services
Governments must provide, monitor and evaluate universal access to a basic package of youth-friendly health services (including mental healthcare and sexual and reproductive health services) that are high quality, integrated, equitable, comprehensive, affordable, needs and rights based, accessible, acceptable, confidential and free of stigma and discrimination for all young people.
As part of this basic package governments must provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services that include safe and legal abortion, maternity care, contraception, HIV and STI prevention, care, treatment and counseling to all young people.
Governments should ensure that all healthcare providers receive training on youth-specific health issues and provision of adolescent and youth-friendly services through pre-service and in-service training and professional development.
Laws and policies
Governments and UN agencies, in line with international human rights standards, should remove legal, policy and regulatory barriers that hinder the meaningful participation and empowerment of young people to exercise and claim their rights.
Governments and UN agencies should support the sexual and reproductive rights of young people including ensuring access to legal.

5 and safe abortion that is affordable, accessible and free from coercion, discrimination and stigma, providing support and protection mechanisms that promote the right to choose.
Governments should implement financially sustainable policies and legal frameworks that protect, promote and fulfill the reproductive and sexual rights of all young people, regardless of their sexual orientation and gender identities.
Call for governments and UN agencies to institutionalize mechanisms for youth leadership, particularly marginalized youth (as mentioned above), in the development of policies and programmes that impact young people’s lives.

6. Final Recommendations from Thematic Session 2: Comprehensive Education
Universal access to free education
Governments must ensure universal access to free, quality, comprehensive education at all levels in a safe and participatory environment.
Inclusive education
Governments must adopt a rights-based approach to education, including formal, informal and non-formal education, targeting vulnerable and marginalized groups*, especially girls.
Governments should provide special, equal and equitable educational programs, including through mainstreaming extracurricular activities, for vulnerable and marginalized groups, especially young people living with disabilities.
Governments and other stakeholders need to acknowledge that learners have different learning needs, requiring different pedagogical styles. Therefore, alternative modes of learning must be valued and formally acknowledged.
Governments should enact, implement and enforce laws that enable education in an environment free from discrimination, violence, and bullying.
Relevant education
Governments and other stakeholders, with the active and meaningful participation of adolescents and youth, should develop and implement effective systems for appropriate curriculum development and

7. periodic review to empower young people to gain relevant skills for employment and livelihoods, including promoting vocational educational programs and involvement of the private sector.
Quality education
Call on governments to implement and monitor sustainable gender-sensitive and transformative educational programs, by establishing gender-sensitive indicators and quality education systems and infrastructure, which should include qualified staff, appropriate facilities, tools (including technology), teaching materials and methods.
Financing and partnerships
Governments must allocate sufficient funds towards achieving universal access to comprehensive education.
Governments should enact policies that facilitate investment in education by private sector partners, the international community and other stakeholders.
Young people should be involved in establishing monitoring and evaluation processes to improve and sustain consistent and quality education that is evidence-based, and ensure effective governance, transparency and accountability.
Comprehensive sexuality education
International community including governments, NGOs, private sector and civil society must establish partnerships to make adolescents and youth aware of their rights to staying healthy through formal and non-formal education.

8. To provide non-discriminatory, non-judgmental, rights-based, age appropriate, gender-sensitive health education including youth-friendly, evidence based comprehensive sexuality education that is context specific. [cf: “Staying Healthy”]
Governments should create enabling environments and policies to ensure that young people have access to comprehensive sexuality education, in formal and non-formal settings, through reducing barriers and allocating adequate budgets.
*Girls, LGBTQI, people living with disabilities, indigenous people, migrants, [socioeconomic status], language minorities, women, pregnant girls, people living in the context of war and humanitarian contexts, sex workers, people living with HIV/AIDS, dropouts, Afro-descendants, and displaced peoples.

9. Final Recommendations from Thematic Session 3: Families, Youth Rights, Well-being and Sexuality
Financing and accountability
Governments should make a political and financial commitment to ensure that sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) policies and programs are prioritized for budgetary allocation and are equally accessible for all young people.
Governments must be transparent in the implementation of policies and programs on SRHR.
Sexual rights
Governments must fund and develop, in equal partnership with young people and health care providers, policies, laws, and programs that recognize, promote, and protect young peoples’ sexual rights as human rights. This must be developed in accordance with the principles of human rights, non-discrimination, respect, equality and inclusivity, with a gendered, multicultural and secular approach.*
Governments, together with other stakeholders, should guarantee an environment free from all forms of harmful traditional practices and psychological, physical and sexual violence, including gender based violence; violence against women; bullying in the home, school, workplace and community; sexual coercion; and female genital.

10. mutilation, amongst others. Support must be provided for victims of violence including free counseling, services and legal redress.
Cultural and religious barriers such as parental and spousal consent, and early and forced marriages, should never prevent access to family planning, safe and legal abortion, and other reproductive health services – recognizing that young people have autonomy over their own bodies, pleasures, and desires.
* With reference to the WHO working definition of sexual rights, the Yogyakarta Principles, and Sexual Rights: an IPPF Declaration.
Legal protection
Governments must ensure that international and national laws, regulations, and policies remove obstacles and barriers – including requirements for parental & spousal notification and consent; and age of consent for sexual and reproductive services—that infringe on the sexual and reproductive health and rights of adolescents and youth.
Governments must repeal laws and regulations that permit violence and/or discrimination against young people, especially those who are marginalized, including laws that limit same-sex marriage, and criminalize YPLHIV and LGBTQI.
Governments should, with multi-stakeholder involvement, promote and implement laws, policies and programs that eliminate harmful practices such as early and forced marriage, rape, sexual and gender

11. based violence, female genital mutilation, honor killings, and all other forms of violence against adolescent girls and young women.
Governments should decriminalize abortion, and create and implement policies and programs that ensure young women have access to safe and legal abortion, pre- and post-abortion services, without mandatory waiting periods, requirements for parental and spousal notification and/or consent or age of consent.
Sexual and reproductive health services and comprehensive sexuality education
Governments should ensure that every young person, including LGBTQI young people, have equal access to the full range of evidence- and rights-based, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services and comprehensive sexuality education, that is respectful of young people’s right to informed consent.
Services should be confidential, accessible, and include a full range of safe, effective, affordable methods of modern contraception and family planning services and commodities, including pre- and post-natal care, amongst others. Comprehensive sexuality education should be developed in partnership with young people and include information on sexual orientation and gender identities that is free of religious intolerance.

12. Families
The concept of the family is constantly evolving and governments must recognize this by adapting legal, policy and programmatic frameworks that embrace every form of family* and ensure the right of everyone to form a family, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.
* Forms of families include but are not limited to: single parenthood, same sex couples, traditional, temporarily separated, displaced, child-led/headed, divorced, cohabitating, fostered, grandparents raising children, couples without children, migrants, extended and LGBTQI.

13. Final Recommendations from Thematic Session 4: The right to decent work
Governments should ensure the right to decent work for young people through effective policies and programmes that generate employment, which is stable, safe, secure, non-discriminatory, and provides a decent wage and opportunities for career development.
Governments and all stakeholders should ensure the rights of young people at work are adhered to, including the right to fair hiring, and to join and organize labor unions, consistent with international conventions.
Meaningful participation
Governments, in equal partnership with the private sector and young people, with special emphasis on marginalized and vulnerable groups, should invest in building the capacities of young people, and in creating an enabling environment for young people to meaningfully participate in all stages of decision making and implementation of rights-based policies and programs on employment.
Investing in people and jobs
Governments should prioritize creation of jobs and a skilled workforce by increased investment including from the private sector through programmes that foster youth entrepreneurship and provide capacity building to young people through (job) trainings, using formal and non-formal curricula, education, vocational and employment counseling, quality paid internships, offer social protection, mentoring and expertise sharing so that young people, in

14. particular marginalized groups, get the necessary information and skills to access decent work opportunities.
Non-discrimination, equality and gender
Governments and international community, in partnership with CSOs, should ensure equal and equitable access to decent work free from discrimination, respectful of diversity, and promoting human development for all young people, in particular young women with children and other vulnerable and marginalized groups*.
Governments should create enabling environments that provide opportunities for young people and diversified jobs that recognize and value their needs and unique skills, perspectives and contributions.
Governments should guarantee that anti-discriminatory laws and policies ensure workplace safety and protection from violence for all. Therefore, governments must update existing international conventions against discrimination to include vulnerable and marginalized groups of young people and enforce them.
Governments and the private sector must support young women’s leadership in the workforce, thereby contributing to sustainable development. They must eliminate gender disparities in all sectors and at all levels of the workforce and implement and enforce policies that address discrimination of young women in the labor market, including equal access to a range of educational and employment opportunities, with equal pay.

15. National policies and plans
Governments should support and protect marginalized groups by strictly adhering to ILO conventions and standards, particularly those relating to domestic workers, and provision of parental leave.
Governments, in partnership with civil society, the private sector, and employers should implement, monitor and evaluate gender-sensitive, rights- and evidence-based national youth employment policies, commit to financing programmes, and develop legal frameworks to ensure social protection mechanisms, including childcare and access to sexual and reproductive health services.
Governments should ensure legal recognition of undocumented workers including migrants, decriminalize sex work, and eliminate mandatory medical checks that are used as a basis for discrimination, especially mandatory HIV, and pregnancy testing in the general protection, respect and fulfillment of the rights of all young people to decent employment.
* Including girls, women, young people who are disabled, LGBTQI, living in rural areas, indigenous, afro-descendant, ethnic minorities, out-of-school, sex workers, domestic workers, undocumented workers, living with HIV, in conflict zones, refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, living on the street, working in the informal economy, and deprived of freedom.

16. Final Recommendations from Thematic Session 5: Leadership and Meaningful Youth Participation
Governments must acknowledge that young people’s participation is a pre-condition for sustainable development. Young people refer to diverse groups* that are (but not limited to) Young People Living with HIV, LGBTQI, indigenous, afro-descendants, persons with disabilities, marginalized ethnicities, religious minorities, migrants that are documented and undocumented, drug users, disadvantaged economic and social groups, young parents, young women, men who have sex with men, refugees, migrants, young people in conflict and emergency situations, pregnant girls, dropouts, displaced people, language minorities, asylum seekers, living on the streets, working in the informal economy, adolescent girls, sex workers and deprived of freedom amongst others.
Participation by all young people
Governments, in equal partnership with the private sector and young people; with special emphasis on marginalized and vulnerable groups*, should invest in building the capacities of young people, and creating an enabling environment for them to meaningfully participate in all stages of decision-making and the implementation of rights-based policies and programs. Governments must ensure the right to legal protection for young people to freely express their opinion and organize.

17. Governments, civil society organizations and all other relevant stakeholders must ensure and monitor, in equal partnership with young people, through effective and gender-sensitive policies and resources, equal access to meaningful participation in local, national and international decision-making forums; in a safe, non-discriminatory, democratic environment, in all geographic areas, with particular attention paid to conflict and post-conflict situations, including vulnerable and marginalized groups*.
Accountability
Governments should ensure that young people have meaningful participation in the allocation of resources at the local and national levels, and the creation of policies that respect, protect and fulfill their human rights.
Governments, UN and other international institutions must develop monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for existing global recommendations on youth issues including meaningful youth participation.
Young people with access to decision-making spaces must be responsible and accountable to their own organizations and their own constituencies.
Funding, empowerment and capacity building
We call on governments, civil society organizations, UN agencies, the private sector, young people and other stakeholders to strengthen, fund and empower organizations by building sustainable youth capacity for participation and leadership. Sustainable youth capacity requires access to information, resources, civic education, technical

18. and entrepreneurial skills, to develop, implement, monitor, and evaluate budgets, policies, programs and other decision making processes
Governments, UN agencies, international organizations and private institutions must invest in increasing the use of all forms of media and ICT as platforms to develop awareness and capacity building for young people.
Governments and CSOs should facilitate access to education, information, and financing of programs and the capacity building of young people.
Leadership
Young people should show unity, transparency, accountability, and responsibility in their initiatives at national, regional and international levels.
Young people should take upon themselves the task of mobilizing and selecting representatives in National Youth Councils and Youth Parliaments, promoting themes (leadership, participation and volunteerism) in a manner that meets their needs and aspirations.
Spaces and levels of participation
Governments and international organizations are urged to undertake political reform to include young people in policy-making and implementation, regardless of socio-economic and cultural background, in line with international human rights standards, and should remove legal, policy and regulatory barriers that hinder the meaningful participation and empowerment of young people to exercise and claim their rights.

19. National and Local-Level Governments, UN agencies, international organizations and private institutions must ensure the meaningful participation of young people at all levels of policy and program development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation without discrimination, coercion, or violence and in equal partnership; support the networking of youth-led organizations and movements at the regional and global levels; and establish structures and systems that promote the civil rights of young people, such as youth councils, youth-led organizations and movements.
The United Nations should appoint a young Special Advisor on youth without delay; employ more young people; and urge member states to have youth representatives in their delegations.
National Level Governments should appoint an independent Youth Minister with an appropriate age limit; institute democratically elected youth parliaments that feed into national parliaments; institute a political representation quota with active recruitment and mentoring for young people; financially and institutionally support youth policies through youth led processes, and not as volunteers alone.
National Level Governments should ensure that the political representation of young people is proportionate to their numbers, with special focus on young women and youth belonging to vulnerable groups*.
Local Level Governments should establish and support youth councils; and provide youth councils with decision-making space within governments.

20. Governments and international bodies should create new and effective channels of social and political participation for civil society and youth organizations.