Event Summary : Voices of Youth on the Move: From ECOSOC to HLPF
The COVID-19 pandemic has unfortunately resulted in the cancelation of many events focused on global youth engagement within UN processes including: the UN75 Youth Plenary, the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum, and the High Level Political Forum (HLPF). To ensure youth would not miss out on the opportunity to record and account for progress in the given mechanisms, the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth (UNMGCY), organized a webinar that would allow youth to still come together and consolidate their inputs. In specific we focused on the topic of “youth on the move” and on three key themes: health risks and opportunities, leveraging innovation and technology, and the unique response and impact of COVID-19 for those on the move.
UNMGCY co-hosted this webinar with the International Organization on Migration (IOM), UNICEF, UNFPA, and the Office of the Secretary General's Envoy on Youth, as well as a number of other youth networks and organizations including Thinkulab, the Global Youth Caucus for Decent Work and Sustainable Economies, the Global Youth Health Caucus and the UNHCR Global Youth Advisory Council.
Opening Ceremony:
The opening ceremony was moderated by Ms. Marta Verani, UN MGCY Global Focal Point for Migration, who was joined by three keynote speakers.
The first speaker was the youth representative, Ms. Maria Corina Muskus who reminded us of the role of young migrants in host societies through the story of Felimar Luque, a Venezuelan gynecologist that migrated to Peru with the dream of performing as a doctor in Lima. Her dream, which at first was inhibited, was realized as a consequence of the COVID-19 outbreak, where a shortage of clinicians led to her appointment highlighting the benefits to a community when a state recognizes migrants’ skills.
The second key speaker was Mr. Ashraf El Nour, Director of the IOM Office to the UN. He highlighted that data is fundamental to facilitate safe, regular and orderly migration and to decide innovative solutions for migration policies. He gave an overview of the effects of the pandemic on youth and children and stressed that among the most hit sectors are the mobile population, refugees and IDPs, and especially the ones in the informal economy.
Ms. Marija Vasileva-Blazev, Senior Advisor to SGEY and representative of the Secretary General's Envoy on Youth, ended by highlighting the importance of positive stories vs negative narratives of young people on the move, and the active participation of young migrants, IDPs, and refugees, and other marginalized groups, in policy dialogue, social justice, and social cohesion.
The webinar then proceeded to the following breakout sessions:
Health Risk and Opportunities for Youth on the Move:
The pandemic has demonstrated the inability of the global health system to protect refugees and displaced persons. Health inequity harms young migrants and youth in general, therefore the requirement of Universal Health Coverage was highlighted as not merely a suggestion, but a required mandate.
Five key inputs highlighted our consultations with youth participants: the need for decent work, gender-based violence and sexual exploitation, poor access to healthcare services, financial crises, and cultural differences.
A key component of these inputs is the themes of financial independence. Youth participants correlated financial stability with health risks and opportunities and cited that an increase in the informal economy is a consequence of overburdening documentation and permit requirements that put undue hardship on refugees, IDP's, and youth on the move. This causes a cascading effect, negatively impacting mental health, the ability to respond to unforeseen expenses, and overall ability to afford healthcare services and support family members. The financial crisis also disproportionately affects women and heightens their exposure to sexual exploitation.
Job training and education on how to navigate the healthcare systems are major priority highlighted. Pragmatic job-related policies need to be implemented to address the skills gap that migrant youth experience on the move. Capacity building training is one favorable method of accomplishing this goal, with an emphasis on soft skills training of youth, thus building their transferable skills.
Leveraging Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship to Support Migrants and Refugees:
The second topic of discussion was the use of tech, innovation, and entrepreneurship to support migrants and refugees. Priorities identified by participants included cybersecurity risks associated with sharing personal information on to online applications, access to technology, funding, and rewarding innovation and expertise, supporting the development of the green economy, widespread translation of online documents, and the promotion of entrepreneurship at the local level.
Participants also identified that STI can be a very useful means to design and develop training programs and to promote business and entrepreneurship among young people. One participant in particular highlighted that training on soft skills and online marketing, fundraising and even coding can enable young people to work remotely – even in lockdowns – helping young people on the move overcome this challenge. They also highlighted that these trainings need to include certificates recognizing their skills and supporting them when navigating competitive labour markets.
Regarding entrepreneurship, young people added that governments and other stakeholders need to invest in education skills and provision of innovation funds for young people on the move. The investment in start-ups at the creative and cultural economies can foster the inclusion of young migrants, the creation of new jobs, decreasing the informal economy, and improving the economy of host and origin societies.
The moderator concluded the breakout session by emphasizing the relationship between economic growth and social policy, citing the importance of workplace rights, social protection, open dialogue, and environmental sustainability.
COVID-19 and Youth on the Move: Impact and Response:
The final breakout session began by hearing of initiatives in each region in response to COVID_19 pandemic – ranging from mentorship and public support programs for vulnerable communities in Singapore; psychological and sanitary campaigns led by civil society organizations in Nigeria; to technological platform development to empower people on the move and guarantee access to public services and labour opportunities during the crisis in Ecuador and other countries.
Youth participants reiterated that the pandemic revealed underlying vulnerabilities in the global health system and demonstrated awareness and commitment to realigning our actions with our priorities to improve the economic and social crisis brought on by the pandemic.
Participants identified a number of key priority asks in view of the HLPF, among these: the urgent need to re-evaluate, democratize and guarantee an affordable access and infrastructure of public health, technology, ICT and education systems; the establishment of bilateral agreements among nations to guarantee migrants’ labor rights and protection schemes for migrant workers; standardized mechanisms for skills recognition and validation of qualifications and degrees; and better protection mechanisms for young returned migrants.
In this unprecedented effort to join voices of youth towards addressing the devastating effects of COVID-19, it was clear that youth representatives from all backgrounds are fighting for a more equal and just world for all.
Closing Ceremony:
The following day the closing ceremony of the webinar was conducted through Facebook live during which youth representatives shared their conclusions on the preceding webinar. It was moderated by Mr. Luis Alonso De Ita, Social and Economic Integration of Migrants Thematic Focal Point at UNMGCY Migration Working Group,
Ms. Irene de Lorenzo, Advocacy and Policy Specialist at UNICEF, reminded us of the impact that young people have in enacting positive change, uttering the memorable phrase:
“do not let anyone steal that positive energy from you, your persistence and your certainty that things can change for the better are your more valuable assets”.
Ms. Soyoltuya Bayaraa, Coordination Adviser, Youth and Demographic Dividend at UNFPA, reminded us of the importance of solidarity in overcoming social and economic challenges that have been amplified by COVID-19 and of the importance of gender-based analysis in all migratory policies for effective action against gender inequality.
After these interventions, the youth rappartours (Miss. Mellany Murgor, Miss. Lina Zdruli and Miss. Foni Joyce Vuni) reported on the key outcomes of the breakout sessions which you can consult HERE.
This Webinar was organized by Thematic Focal Points Mr. Luis Alonso De Ita, Mr. Alejandro Briones and Miss. María José Cisneros, under the guidance of Global Focal Point Ms. Marta Verani, from UNMGCY Migration Working Group, co-hosted by the IOM NY team and in collaboration with UNFPA, UNICEF, the Office of the Secretary General's Envoy on Youth, Thinkulab, the Global Youth Caucus for Decent Work and Sustainable Economies, the Global Youth Health Caucus and the UNHCR Global Youth Advisory Council.
This blog post was drafted by UNMGCY´s Migration Working Group.