This is according to the United Nations (UN) which is commemorating International Youth Day 2022 on Friday 12 August, with the message that solidarity across generations is key for sustainable development and creating a world for all ages.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a call for action by all countries to promote prosperity while protecting the planet and leaving no one behind. They recognise that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection.

International Youth Day 2022 will also raise awareness on certain barriers to intergenerational solidarity, namely ageism, which impacts young and old people. Ageism is an insidious and often unaddressed issue in health, human rights, and development, and has bearings on both older and younger populations around the world. Ageism regularly intersects with other forms of bias such as racism and sexism and impacts people in ways that prevent them to reach their full potential and comprehensively contribute to their community.

The Deputy Minister of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco), Mr Alvin Botes, is expected to address the International Youth Day commemoration event in Bloemfontein on Friday 12 August 2022, at the University of the Free State (UFS) in Bloemfontein.

Representatives from the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), South African Institute of International Affairs, UN Population Fund and the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities will also participate in the event.

Did you know?

•Surveys show that 67% of people believe in a better future, with 15 to 17 year-olds being the most optimistic about this.

•The majority of people agree that the age balance in politics is wrong. More than two-thirds (69%) of people across all age groups agree that more policy development opportunities for younger people would make political systems better.

•Globally, only 2.6% of parliamentarians are under 30 years old, and less than 1% of these young MPs are women.

UN