World Youth Report 2016

164 Pages·03.064 MB·English

by  DESA

YOUTH CIVIC

ENGAGEMENT
YOUTH CIVIC
ENGAGEMENT
UNITED NATIONS DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS
World Youth Report
Published by the United Nations
New York, New York 10017
United States of America
United Nations Publication
Copyright © United Nations, 2016
All rights reserved
All queries or rights and licenses including subsidiary rights should be addressed to United
Nations Publications, 300 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017, United States of America;
email: [email protected]; website: un.org/publications.
Note: The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication
do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the
United Nations concerning the legal status of any country or territory or of its authorities,
or concerning the delimitations of its frontiers. The term “country” as used in the text of
the present report also refers, as appropriate, to territories or areas. The designations of
country groups in the text and the tables are intended solely for statistical or analytical
convenience and do not necessarily express a judgment about the stage reached by a
particular country or area in the development process. Mention of the names of firms and
commercial products does not imply the endorsement of the United Nations.
Technical Note: In this publication, unless otherwise indicated, the term “youth” refers to
all those between the ages of 15 and 24, as reflected in the World Programme of Action
for Youth. The term “young people” may be used interchangeably with the word “youth”.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the contributions to this publication are those of the
individual authors and do not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the United
Nations or of the organizations with which the authors are affiliated.
Front Cover Photo: ©UNICEF/UNI185047/Cherkaou—Dar Es Salam refugee Camp, Chad.
Design: Graphic Design Unit, Outreach Division, Department of Public Information,
United Nations, New York
www.unworldyouthreport.org
THE DEPARTMENT OF
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS

The Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations
Secretariat is a vital interface between global policies in the economic,
social and environmental spheres and national action. The Department
works in three main interlinked areas: it compiles, generates and analy-
ses a wide range of economic, social and environmental data and infor-
mation on which Members States of the United Nations draw to review
common problems and to take stock of policy options; it facilitates the
negotiations of Member States in many intergovernmental bodies on
joint courses of action to address ongoing or emerging global chal-
lenges; and it advises interested governments on the ways and means
of translating policy frameworks developed in United Nations confer-
ences and summits into programmes at the country level and, through
technical assistance, helps build national capacities.
Peace Bell Ceremony
to commemorate the
International Day of
Peace (21 September)
©UN Photo/Amanda Voisard
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The World Youth Report, prepared biennially, is The preparation of the Report was led by the
the flagship publication on youth issues of the Director of the Division for Social Policy and
Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the Development, Daniela Bas, in close collaboration
United Nations Secretariat. The World Youth Report with the Focal Point on Youth, Nicola Shepherd, and
on Youth Civic Engagement is a product of the the Chief of the Social Integration Branch, Jean-
efforts, contributions and support of many people Pierre Gonnot.
and organizations.
Research, drafting and synthesis of the Report was
The Report represents a collaborative effort made carried out by Elizabeth Niland, with support pro-
possible by the input and contributions of experts vided by Anna Marusina. The Report was edited by
in the field of youth and civic engagement. In Terri Lore. The Report has also benefited from pos-
particular, the United Nations Department of itive feedback from colleagues within and outside
Economic and Social Affairs would like to extend the Department of Economic and Social Affairs. We
special thanks to the Report’s contributing authors, are grateful to all who have contributed.
namely, Akil N. Awan, Mark Brennan, Pat Dolan,
Erhardt Graeff, Sarah Huxley, Amy F. Huziak, Selina
Khoo, Nur Laiq, Andre Matthias Müller, Claudia
Pompa, Lakshitha Saji Prelis, Gianni Rosas, and
James Sloam. Biographies of the authors can be
found in the annex to the current Report.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
10 Introduction
17 Civic Engagement: An Overview—Pat Dolan and Mark Brennan
CHAPTER 2: ECONOMIC ENGAGEMENT
26 Introduction
36 In Search of Benchmarks for Quality Internships—Gianni Rosas
47 Youth Entrepreneurship: The Coming Jobs Gap—600 Million Reasons to
Promote Youth Entrepreneurship—Claudia Pompa
55 Youth Bargaining Power: Securing Rights through Trade Unions—Amy F. Huziak
CHAPTER 3: POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT
62 Introduction
68 Youth Electoral Participation—James Sloam
82 Transitions in Power: Young People’s Role—Nur Laiq
87 Negative Youth Engagement: Involvement in Radicalism and Extremism—Akil N. Awan
95 Youth Digital Activism—Erhardt Graeff
CHAPTER 4: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
108 Introduction
120 Reconceptualizing Youth Voluntarism: Who Decides?—Sarah Huxley
129 Youth Engagement in Peacebuilding—Lakshitha Saji Prelis
138 Youth Participation in Sport for Development—Selina Khoo and Andre Matthias Müller
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
144 Introduction
148 Recommendations for Economic Engagement
151 Recommendations for Political Engagement
155 Recommendations for Community Engagement
ANNEX
158 Author Biographies
BOXES, FIGURES AND TABLES
29 Box 2.1. Youth NEET
31 Box 2.2. Gender disparities in youth employment
32 Box 2.3. Training and skills development: passing the cost-benefit test
41 Box 2.4. The purpose of an internship: the six-part test in the United States
48 Box 2.5. Youth entrepreneurship in numbers
49 Box 2.6. Who wants to be an entrepreneur?
55 Box 2.7. What is precarious work?
113 Box 4.1. Benefits of youth engagement for the individual—Pat Dolan and Mark Brennan
114 Box 4.2. Benefits of youth engagement for the community—Pat Dolan and Mark Brennan
116 Box 4.3. Approaches to peacebuilding and the role of youth—Alan Smith
125 Box 4.4. Key principles of Youth Volunteerism
139 Box 4.5. Young women and sport
140 Box 4.6. Sport and the engagement of young people with disabilities
71 Figure 3.1. Youth participation in electoral politics
72 Figure 3.2. Participation in electoral politics (voting and party membership) among
18- to 29-year olds compared with all those over age 18
75 Figure 3.3. Youth participation in issue-based politics
76 Figure 3.4. Participation in issue-based politics (boycotts, petitions and demonstrations)
among 18- to 29-year olds compared with all those over age 18
17 Table 1.1. Discourses informing Civic Engagement
70 Table 3.1. Political participation by age, gender and educational status
EXPLANATORY NOTES
The terms “country”, “more developed regions”, and The following abbreviations have been
“less developed regions” are used for statistical con- used in the Report:
venience and do not necessarily express a judgement
CNCS Corporation for National and
as to the developmental stage of a particular coun-
Community Service
try or area. More developed regions are comprised
of all countries in Europe and Northern America,
CPRR Process Approach Model for Community
as well as Australia, New Zealand and Japan. The
Peace, Recovery, and Reconciliation
term “developed countries” refers to countries in the
more developed regions. Less developed regions are CV curriculum vitae
comprised of all countries of Africa, Asia (excluding
DDOS distributed denial of service
Japan) and Latin America and the Caribbean, as well
as Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. The term
EU European Union
“developing countries” is used to designate countries
in the less developed regions.
FATA Federally Administered Tribal Areas
FIFA Fédération Internationale de Football
Association

FIJE Federación Iberoamericana de Jóvenes

GEM Global Entrepreneurship Monitor

G20 YEA G20 Youth Entrepreneurs’ Alliance

HPA Harry Potter Alliance
8
HRC Human Rights Campaign SFCG Search for Common Ground
ICT information and communications SMS Short Messaging Service (text messaging)
technology
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific
ILO International Labour Organization and Cultural Organization
ITF International Transport Workers’ Federation UN-Habitat United Nations Human Settlements
Programme
ITUC International Trade Union Confederation
UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
IVS international volunteering and service
UNOY Peacebuilders United Network of Young
KPK Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Peacebuilders
LSE London School of Economics
WAM! Women, Action and the Media
MENA Middle East and North Africa
WPAY World Programme of Action for Youth
NEET not in employment, education or training
YBI Youth Business International
OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation
YLC Youth Leadership Council (Tunisia)
and Development
PATRIR Peace Action Training and Research
Institute of Romania
9