WANEP Events

WANEP Marks International Youth Day (IYD) by Amplifying Youth Voices in Peacebuilding

0

Young people are among the major contributors to conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Their meaningful participation in these areas is essential to advancing the Youth, Peace and Security agenda, especially as countries across West and Central Africa work to localise the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2250 and the African Union Continental Framework on the Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS) agenda.

As UNSCR 2250 marks its 10ᵗʰ anniversary and as part of International Youth Day, celebrated on 12 August each year, reflections are underway on the progress made and lessons learned in translating this agenda into concrete national strategies.

In this context, WANEP commenced a series of activities aimed at empowering young people, fostering positive change, and strengthening their resilience. On 11 August 2025, WANEP, in collaboration with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), jointly organised a virtual webinar. The event explored the theme Sharing Experiences, Shaping Policy: Amplifying Youth Voices in YPS NAP Development for the 10th Anniversary of UNSCR 2250.” It spotlighted the National Action Plan (NAP) development journeys of Benin, Senegal, Liberia, and The Gambia, capturing valuable lessons from their distinct processes, particularly regarding meaningful youth engagement and fostering robust knowledge exchange among stakeholders.

The webinar opened with remarks from Mr. David Omozuafoh, Regional Governance and Rule of Law Advisor at UNDP, who stressed that “any effort to create lasting peace and resilience in Africa must place youth as active agents of change, as well as recipients of support.”

Also speaking at the event, Mr Ifeanyi Okechukwu, Deputy Executive Director of WANEP, emphasised that “the young population presents an opportunity for future development, as they are a strong constituency not only to drive development but also to be recognised as key players in decision-making to address the peace and security challenges we face in our region.” He reaffirmed WANEP’s continued support for advancing the YPS process in nine West African countries — including The Gambia, Liberia, Benin, Ghana, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo — through technical assistance, advocacy, and partnership building. This work is undertaken in collaboration with the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (UN DPPA), UN Population Fund (UNFPA), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, UNDP, and ECOWAS. He also highlighted the role of WANEP’s National Secretariat in The Gambia in the development and publication of the country’s YPS NAP 2020–2030, noting that “collaboration strengthens opportunities for policy and practice actualisation, which in turn reinforces the YPS agenda at sub-national, national, and regional levels.”

Ms. Simone Diouf, African Youth for Peace Envoy representing West Africa, further underscored the importance of ensuring that “National Action Plans have a real impact and are monitored and supported by young people. These plans should not just be technical documents but living tools from which young people can derive concrete indicators.”

The webinar further aimed to deepen understanding of local youth leadership and grassroots engagement, promote YPS NAP localisation and implementation, and produce evidence-based recommendations to inform a youth-centred policy brief for West and Central Africa.

Over 130 participants joined the webinar, including representatives from UN agencies (UNFPA, UNDP), the African Union, youth leaders from Benin, Liberia, The Gambia, and Senegal, youth activists and youth-led organisations from West and Central Africa, civil society representatives, policymakers and government officials engaged in NAP development and implementation, researchers, academics, and experts on the YPS agenda, supporting peacebuilding and youth empowerment.

Participants engaged with the panellists, shared perspectives, and asked pertinent questions to enriched the discourse.

From the discussions, participants recommended the need to:

  1. Strengthen the capacities of young people to enable their active participation in decision-making spaces and secure a genuine seat at the table.
  2. Ensure NAPs are credible and inclusive, positioning youth as principal contributors rather than occasional invitees.
  3. Highlight and replicate successful examples from the NAPs of Benin, Senegal, Liberia, and The Gambia to inspire improvement across the region.
  4. Adopt and implement realistic policies supported by adequate resources, avoiding overly ambitious commitments.

A key outcome of the webinar will be the development of a policy brief highlighting the lessons and good practices of NAP development and implementation, to guide ongoing and future YPS initiatives across the African continent and beyond.

admin

WANEP’s Briefing to the United Nations Security Council on 7 August 2025

Previous article

WANEP Trains 120 Young Peacebuilders on “The Secrets to Successful Advocacy”

Next article

You may also like

Comments

Comments are closed.

More in WANEP Events