Peace work requires effective youth participation

The joint workshop focused on the question of when youth participation is truly effective and what conditions are necessary for this within the context of the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda (YPS Agenda). The participants learnt about the quality standards for child and youth participation and applied them to the YPS Agenda. The standards were developed jointly by the Bundesjugendring and the Federal Ministry for Youth and offer guidance on how to ensure that participation is effective, inclusive, transparent and verifiable. The YPS Agenda stems from UN Security Council Resolution 2250 and encompasses the five areas of action: participation, protection, prevention, partnerships, and disengagement and reintegration.

During the working sessions, participants discussed five key questions: What institutional and societal framework conditions are needed for youth participation in YPS? How can it reach all young people? What qualifications are necessary? How can participation be made transparent? And how can it be monitored and further developed?

The discussion highlighted that youth participation in peace and security requires political accountability, clear responsibilities and reliable points of contact. The participants also emphasised that the YPS agenda must be translated more effectively into the national context. Youth-friendly communication, understandable terminology, trust and a translation into the context of young people’s everyday lives are crucial to ensure that YPS does not remain an abstract concept.

Capacity-building was also identified as a key prerequisite. Young people need knowledge, information, language skills, self-confidence and a practical understanding of the added value the YPS Agenda offers them. For international youth work, professional exchanges focusing on the five pillars of the YPS Agenda were discussed as a possible starting point. Transparency, feedback, realistic framework conditions and cost transparency were highlighted as further conditions for effective participation.

The key takeaway from the workshop is that quality standards for youth participation are also relevant in the context of peace and security and must be taken into account and applied in participatory formats.