Welcome to #AdvancingPYD!
Over the next eight weeks, we will highlight key learnings, collaborations, and progress that YouthPower Learning achieved over the last five years. This campaign will culminate with the launch of our project summative report, which will pull all the pieces together. As the project draws to a close at the end of April, we hope the youth-development community will join the next iteration of the project, YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation, in advancing PYD.
Leading off the series is our spotlight on the suite of youth assessments that YouthPower Learning conducted since the project’s inception. These assessments give insight into the state of youth around the world.
Why Youth Assessments?
In response to USAID’s 2012 Youth in Development Policy, YouthPower Learning conducted extensive analysis in 10 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to identify opportunities to advance youth development so that youth—and the communities and systems that surround them—can effectively contribute to development objectives. The USAID Missions and Bureaus that commissioned them shared that these assessments provide a solid foundation and critical considerations for updating their country strategies or developing new youth-focused programs.
In some cases, governments are updating their youth policies or strategies to reflect the identified priorities. Overall, the process and outcomes provided a space for youth engagement, as each country's analysis drew heavily on inputs from youth—with approximately 2,000 young people consulted—and most also engaged youth as part of the research team.
What Did We Learn?
Overall, the assessments highlighted bright spots, priorities, and opportunities for youth and presented recommendations aimed to shape USAID's and other stakeholders' strategies and programs. Across the board, the youth assessments generally found national policies to be well-written or well-intentioned, but not effectively implemented in practice. Multi-stakeholder engagement that brings in governments, the private sector, and youth-led networks is key in promoting youth development that effectively addresses the concerns and priorities of young people so they can thrive.
Three consistent recommendations across the assessments are: build capacity around adolescent and positive youth development, be intentional about focusing on and engaging with youth, and ensure programming is holistic and cross-sectoral to achieve stronger outcomes.
Read on for more specific insights shared by youth:
Youth and Workforce
High unemployment and underemployment were top concerns among youth in all 10 countries. Access to education was another concern frequently cited amongst youth. Additionally, opportunities like mentorships, apprenticeships, and work-based learning were highly valued. Agriculture was an important source of livelihoods for youth in most countries, but many youth expressed mixed feelings about this sector, associating agriculture with low earnings and undesirable, labor-intensive work. In half the countries, migration was a salient issue that youth faced, and most youth who migrated did so for livelihoods opportunities.
Health
Health concerns amongst the youth surveyed covered many areas, including TB, HIV/AIDS, substance abuse, and mental health, among others. Teen pregnancy and substance abuse were the two most common priorities cited by youth.
Gender and Marginalized Youth
The youth highlighted the systemic discrimination that girls and women face in each of the countries, determining that most common barriers included: limited access to education; early marriage; sexual and gender-based violence; and teen pregnancy.
Almost half of the assessments mentioned LGBTQ youth as a vulnerable group that often is left without legal protections and faces social stigma. Youth with disabilities were also mentioned as a particularly vulnerable group in several countries. Other priority groups included youth at risk for recruitment by violent extremism, poor urban youth, and rural under-resourced youth.
Youth Engagement
In terms of engaging with society, many young people expressed frustration in the fact that their voice was not heard by adults and society writ large, and that they had few opportunities to develop leadership roles. Most youth mentioned their mobile phones and social media as important ways for them to network and access information, citing both the positive and negative effects of social media.
Discover Our Assessments
For a deeper dive into the state of youth, we encourage you to access our assessments and their associated briefs for more detailed findings and what they mean for youth globally. A complete list of our 10 youth assessments can be found below. Stay tuned in the coming months, as we’ll be releasing three new assessments (Kenya, Mauritania and Guinea)!