Youth Event: Building Solutions Together for Inclusive Future - Third Committee, General Assembly, 80th session

Friends and colleagues, good afternoon.

Good afternoon.

I would like to welcome you all to this youth event that I am convening in my capacity as Chair of the Third Committee. Welcome once again to this informal meeting. This meeting is held on the theme Building Solutions Together for an inclusive future and provides an opportunity for member states and youth representatives to come together and share views and thoughts on issues addressed by the Third Committee, how they impact you young people, and actions being taken by member states and youth groups on the same. Excellencies, colleagues, this event serves to promote dialogue between youth organizations, member states, UN agencies, and other stakeholders on youth action, including providing a space for member states to reflect on their priorities and progress. And of course, this This conference serves to amplify youth-led priorities, which we will be hearing from you, experiences and recommendations on the thematic issues under the committee's purview. As chair of the Third Committee, it is indeed my privilege to be able to convene this event, the first of its kind. As a space for an open dialogue between member states, young people, civil society on the issue of youth. This event happens as we mark the 80th anniversary of the United Nations, the Pact for the Future, and of course commemorates the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth. This milestone challenges us to renew our collective effort to strengthen our multilateral framework. With more than 1.2 billion youth around the world, the future generation indeed holds immense potential. They are our future leaders, changemakers, influencers, and so much more. They are You are driving innovation at local, national, and global level. Strengthening partnership with youth and ensuring that they have meaningful roles in multilateralism is an essential process to rebuild trust in multilateralism and global governance framework for the future. This event is part of my effort As chair of the Third Committee, to ensure that the good works from prior sessions are maintained and strengthened, I'll continue to strive for collaboration with various stakeholders and create an environment for an inclusive, constructive, and resolvent dialogue. A few weeks ago, my Foreign Minister— the Foreign Minister of Thailand was here at the UN during the High-Level Week and he made it clear that member states must embrace the power of youth. Thailand is fully committed to investing, empowering young people and giving them opportunities to drive change. We are proud to regularly send youth delegates to both the UNGA and the UN ECOSOC Youth Forum. We believe that their voices are extremely important and should be heard. I have heard many inspiring ideas from youth delegates from many countries during this past week. Today we are able to be joined not only delegates in this room, but many who connected virtually from across the globe. This hybrid participation underscores our efforts to create a platform where all voices can contribute. On this note, I would like to extend my deep appreciation to the delegation of Portugal for their support for this event, which enable the provision of conference management systems, including video conferencing, for virtual participants. I look forward to a constructive and informative exchange with all member states, youth advocates and organizations, and other stakeholders based on the spirit of goodwill, understanding, and mutual respect. It is now my great pleasure to invite Ms. Keisha De Vries-Lawrence, Youth Advocate, to deliver a spoken word message of hope.

Thank you, Mr. I'm here to share some perspectives and teachings on hope, because hope is a precious seed we must carry for a better next 80 years. Hope is active, never passive. Hope is passed down, planted, cherished, defended, harvested, and celebrated. Hope requires diligent planning and meaningful action. When you have hope, your brain activates the prefrontal cortex, the organizing headquarters, to set goals, forge pathways, and it releases neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, all of which promote feelings of happiness and wellness. making us all the more able and possible to achieve the goals that we've hoped for. On World Mental Health Day, it is imperative that we address the role of our collective thought on our collective bodies and on our collective mother. I asked a few relatives to share what hope is in their traditional languages, understanding that hope is to create a continued frequency, a ripple effect, if you will. In Lenape, kwe'laha. In Anishinaabe, bagosoren. In Hawaiian, ho'olana. In Tlingit, tutan. You see, now is the time that our hope ripens into happiness, and the sweet nectar of both will carry us and nurture us into the sustainable future of 2030 and beyond. While adding kindling to the fire that is UNDRIP, it is tomorrow at sunrise the best time to mature the stock of the pack for the future, providing them with the necessary conditions for growth, appropriate implementation, intergenerational nutrients, water mindfulness, and truly allowing them to flourish. It is in the upcoming moons that we will build the mounds of which the seeds of world social development will sprout from, growing root systems that connect each and every single one of us. And it is from the continuation of synergistic exchanges of knowledge we will boost diverse solutions, let our commitments flow to the future, and without doubt join and create new waves of symbiosis. Because we are living hope. May we consistently hear each other the way the ocean and shore take turns listening and talking. May we endlessly see each other the way Nokoomis, Grandmother Moon, and Grandfather Sun do, vastly different but equally important. May we always find and hold each other the same way the galaxy embraces all of stars and creation. May we each remain rooted but still floating in the lake of life the way manoomin, wild rice, does in early summer. Because that is my hope, for every single one of us to prevail as seeds and berries of positive change. Anushik, Katabatosh, thank you.

Let me express our thanks to Ms. Daphne Lawrence. I now invite Ms. Deanne Keta Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund, to deliver a statement. The floor is yours.

Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. Your Excellency, distinguished guests, esteemed UN colleagues, dear young partners here in the room and online, Thank you. On the— at the eve of the Girl Child Day, I really would like to thank you, Mr. Chair, for inviting me to speak at the first-ever youth event on the Third Committee. What a powerful demonstration of meaningful intergenerational engagement and an important opportunity to put institutional weight behind our commitment to engage with all the youth.

Thank you.

The important question for me here is, who is being left behind? And how would we know who is left behind? In the largest generation of young people of the world that we have ever seen, too many young people are being overlooked. If an adolescent girl in a remote village might be at risk of child marriage, can be invisible to us, exercising her rights is all but totally impossible. If she isn't seen, she can't be reached. If a young person with a disability lacks access to the services they need or is displaced by a climate disaster, their dignity is often the first casualty. Structural and intersecting barriers such as gender inequality, discrimination, and poverty continue to hold back young people in the most vulnerable circumstances. And those young people are not just left behind, they are being pushed aside.

So being in this room today is already a privilege.

So what can we do with you? We need to rally together to ensure that every young person everywhere can live in full equality, free from harm, and with the hope of future possibilities. Leaving no one behind is not a slogan. It underpins everything that we do at UNFP in our program's work. From directing financial resources to young people who face the most acute barriers, making young people partners in the planning and implementation of our program, and supporting youth-led organizations, we are with you. And you are never alone. And, you know, the— probably young people, this is the only subject we have to work as a UN together. Whether it's the Youth Affairs Office, whether it's UNDESA, ILO, UNICEF, UNDP, I can cite all UN agencies. We need to work together if we want to reach out to you. Thank you. So investing in you all is not really a choice, it's an imperative. You are invaluable experts and understand the need of your communities. This is why in this first dialogue with the Third Committee, that is such an important committee for the UN, we need to be very intentional about shifting resources in this very difficult resource time. And shifting the power to youth-led and youth-focused organizations, including movements, networks led by young women, and feminist organizations. We are committed to empowering all of you so that you can realize your full potential. We have— and I will finish on that— a very dedicated adolescent and youth strategy: My Body, My Life, and My World. Which is our commitment to you. It hinges on those 3 interconnected pillars. First, my body. It's about yourself. It's about ensuring young people can make informed, autonomous choices about their bodies and access sexual reproductive healthcare, which is fundamental to health and human dignity. The second, my life. It's about who you partner with. It's about accessing services. It's about equipping young people with the knowledge, the skills, and opportunity to thrive. And third, my world. It's about your environment, promoting youth participation and leadership, supporting young people in humanitarian settings, and advancing the youth peace and security agenda. It's really about that. So from ICPD to the Pact of the Future to the resolution of the Third Committee, We stand with you by co-creating programs and look forward to contributing more than ever onto the Third Committee work, and we affirm that the United Nations is moving in the right direction towards a greater inclusivity and participation. I thank you.

I thank the Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund for Thank you very much for her statement. I would like to invite Dr. Philippe Paulier, Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, to deliver a statement. The floor is yours.

Thank you very much and good afternoon to everyone. I'm very pleased to be here with all of you and I'd like to start by thanking the Third Committee Chair Ambassador for hosting us and for convening this meeting, to the Third Committee Secretariat, our colleagues from DGACM that are always supporting every intergovernmental process, to the Major Group of 4 Children and Youth for inviting all of us, So, Jugradna and Sameh, thank you. And on your behalf, thank you to everyone that builds MGCY as a platform, which is a collective one. And of course, I'm very honored to be in this panel also with these 3 powerful women that lead in the UN, you know, Diane, Cynthia, and Björk, who I admire a lot, and I learn from them every day.

Thank you.

Every day, and and I think it's a it's a clear example of how leadership looks like in the UN in terms of really being very diverse and coming from very different parts of the world, having a strong and a big part of our leadership women. Powerful women that are leading and changing the UN, and hopefully we'll see this also in the new cycle of our next Secretary-General, but especially very, very committed to young people and putting young people at the centre, you know, and I think that's the progress we're seeing in the UN system, and that's something we'll continue to see in the upcoming, you know, together, because this agenda is moving forward because of the advocacy of young people, and the agency of young people. The truth is that today's generation of youth, you know, is carrying the weight of multiple and overlapping crises. Crises related to economic shocks, rising emissions and the climate crisis, conflicts affecting the most always children, youth, and women. And in this very special day also of Mental Health Awareness Day, a very silent mental health epidemic, you know, which is really eroding the hope for our future, and it's also eroding all of the Sustainable Development Goals. And these crises are happening also in, in a very complex political moment for our humanity, you know, where we unfortunately are seeing in many parts of the world shrinking civic spaces, you know, disinformation that spreads. But in this world, young people are not being silent, you know, they're actually taking action. And we are seeing this in multiple parts of the world, both on the digital space, but mainly on the streets, demanding for accountability and pushing our institutions to change. 2 weeks ago, exactly 2 weeks ago, or almost exactly, for the very first time during a high-level week of the UN General Assembly, there was a high-level meeting focusing on young people. It was in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth, that global and common framework that the UN has when it's about approaching youth and supporting youth. But for the UN, it was very important that this was not only an intergovernmental space, it was also an opportunity to really mobilize young people and to bring young people's perspectives and voices, you know. And that's why, with multiple partners of the UN family and with civil society, we were able to push for an exercise of decentralized foresight initiatives before this high-level meeting, so we can build on this high-level meeting also with the voices coming from different parts of the world. And in a very short period between July and August, we were able to mobilize almost 75,000 young people from 182 countries that co-led these dialogues with UN partners, with civil society partners, with governments in some parts of the world, you know, sharing their realities but also putting an emphasis on the future they want to see. And what was the lesson of this exercise for us? Because it's really about how we learn from any of these initiatives. The lesson is that when, from an institutional perspective, we adapt to young people's reality and not the other way around, participation flourishes. Is that when we meet young people where they are, participation flourishes. The renewal of multilateralism will happen where young people are, and young people are in their classrooms, in their community halls, they are on the online spaces, and in many, many informal gatherings across the world. So of course, this critical— and these spaces are very important to make these structural transformations, but it's also about how we go to meet young people where they are. So just to end, I want to make 3 points in terms of how we also believe and how we are trying also to use these forums and spaces to make these structural transformations. The first point is really We cannot promote any of this participation if we don't secure fundamental rights. We cannot expect participation from those that are struggling to survive, you know. We must ensure access to education, to decent jobs, to healthcare, to housing, and to social protection. And we must secure safety when young people express themselves, and we must secure safety for young people to be who they are, defending especially those traditionally left behind. The second is we need to continue to institutionalize meaningful participation because, you know, it's not about events on the margins of the decision-making bodies. It's actually bringing young people into the main and the core of these decision-making bodies and hopefully dreaming about bringing these meaningful and decision-making bodies to young people are. And the third point, it's really about investing, you know. We cannot really do anything of this if there is not secure funding, you know. And, you know, the return of investment about investing in youth-led solutions, it's clearly higher. Than investing in post-conflict, investing in the consequences. So the call, again, as in every platform, is really to put the emphasis there. So for those member states in the room, I think that it's also a recognition, a positive one, that we're moving in the right direction, you know. So I hope that this high-level meeting on youth, where we saw, you know, almost 150 member states in the room, 13 heads of state, almost 90 ministers, not only youth ministers, ministers of foreign affairs, ministers of finance, ministers of climate, is just the beginning, you know. When we bring civil society, as it happened, you know, with 600 civil society representatives participating, we're building a much more inclusive and effective multilateral platform, you know. So I hope we don't need to wait 30 more years to have a high-level meeting on youth during the high-level week. So thank you very much.

I would like to express my thanks to the Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs for a very inspiring statement. Let me turn the microphone to Ms. Cynthia Samuel-Olanjuwon, Special Representative of the International Labour Organization to the United Nations. to deliver a statement. The floor is yours.

Thank you very much, Chair, and thank you for pronouncing my name so well. Excellencies, youth delegates, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, colleagues, friends, I thank the Chair of the UNGA Third Committee for convening this pertinent and very timely conversation on intergenerational solutions for an inclusive future. I really thank the Chair and all those mentioned by Philippe for including the ILO in this discussion, and we're really pleased to work closely with DESA, with the UN Youth Office, with UNFPA, and other UN partners to move this agenda forward. This is not just talk, it's commitment, it's dedication to working with you and all the critical stakeholders to move the needle. Talk, as they say, is very cheap. We don't want the cheap stuff. We really want to work together to move the needle. I'd like to reflect on 3 key issues. First, let's look at the data. According to the recent ILO report on the state of social justice, the world is wealthier, healthier, and better educated when compared to 30 years ago when we held the World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen. Some of the key achievements include the reduction of child labor from 20.6% to 7.8%, reduction of extreme poverty from 39% to 10%, the reduction of working poverty from 27.9% to 6.9%, achieving social protection coverage for more than 50% of the world's population. That report also highlights that transitions to greener and digital economies are opening new avenues for youth employment. That's the good news. But this good news coexists with persistent challenge. The top 1% control 20% of income and 38% of wealth. While we have also seen improvements in job numbers, 1 in 5 young people worldwide are not in employment, they are not in education, they are not in training. For too many young women and men, the transition from school to work remains a story of lost potential. Young women are nearly 3 times more likely than young men to be in this category, and this is an alarming reminder that gender inequalities continue to hold back young women's progress in the labor market. Even those who find work, it's often in temporary, low-paid or insecure work, and half of young workers are in informal or short-term jobs with no social protection, no hope of upward mobility, referencing the hope that was emphasized in the first presentation that we listened to. It's no surprise then that many young people feel anxious about their future. Mental health and well-being remain the main victim here. Second, these realities reflect deeper societal transformations. In 2018, for the first time ever, there were more people aged 65 and above than children under 5, and by 2080, the number of people over 65 will surpass those under 18. People are living longer, they're living healthier, and many societies are aging rapidly. Older workers are staying longer in the labor force, some by choice, some out of necessity. However, this is not a universal story. Africa's population is booming. With a median age of 19 compared to nearly 40 in North America. This youthquake— not an earthquake— this youthquake is both an opportunity and a challenge, making it crystal clear that creating decent work for Africa's youth is essential, not only for the future of the global economy but for social justice. We need intergenerational solidarity. We need policies that balance the needs of an aging population with the aspirations of the youth, creating a virtuous cycle with each generation supporting the other. Third, and the last area of focus, we need effective collaboration not only across generations, but among all relevant stakeholders for lasting progress. The upcoming Second World Summit for Social Development, which will take place next month in Doha, presents a generational opportunity to refocus our efforts and elevate the social dimension of sustainable development. I'm really pleased to note that the draft political declaration underscores the foundational role of decent work for social development, and it includes commitments to improve the labor market outlook for young and older people, notably through intergenerational knowledge transfer in the workplace. It also includes efforts to enhance the inclusiveness and responsiveness of skill systems to evolving labor market needs. Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, colleagues and friends, the ILO's unique tripartite structure brings together governments, representatives of workers, representatives of business, and offers us a practical example of inclusive governance in shaping global policy. Through the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth, the UN's first-ever system-wide effort on youth employment, over 100 partners are mobilizing action across sectors, across regions, including driving impact in the digital, the green, and the care economies. As I end, it's important to reiterate that when young people are at the table, policies become sharper, Policies become more relevant. Policies are more equitable. The future of work, and indeed the future of our societies, depends on us working strategically together and in solidarity. I thank you.

I express my thanks to the Special Representative of the ILO to the United Nations for her statement. I now turn the microphone to Ms. Björk Sandskär, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, to deliver a statement. The microphone is yours.

Thank you very much, Chair. Good afternoon. And thank you again to the Chair of the Third Committee for bringing us together, not least bringing us together with young people to enable us to listen to the very important views that young people bring to the discussions that we have here at the UN and today under the theme Building Intergenerational Solutions for an Inclusive Future. So the 3 speakers before me, I think, have said it all. Put the compelling case for youth involvement, and I don't think I need to tell anyone in this room that that's important. You know it very well. We've had dialogue and interactions before, and I always appreciated the strong voices of the youth always pushing us with very relevant, concrete messages on— so that we as the UN system can work together to be better and to be able to address the real needs and real challenges that you see in your daily lives. So we've heard a lot about that. I'll talk a little bit about the work that we do here at the UN and the engagement of young people there, because we know how young people really are the key to the work of the Third Committee. The discussions that happen in the Third Committee You know, from social development and human rights to inclusion and equality, it does, of course, directly shape the realities and lives of young people and future generations. At the same time, we also know that you are already leading those efforts and driving solutions to turn Global Goals into tangible progress. Where I sit in UN DESA— DESA means the Department of Economic and Social Affairs here at the UN Secretariat— and we work to advance youth inclusion in intergovernmental processes, and we recognize that that meaningful participation of young people in decision-making is essential to building those more inclusive policies that we work on. One of the key ways that we do this is through managing the UN Youth Delegate Program.

I met some of the youth delegates earlier this week, and I see some of you in this room. It's great to see you.

That program provides young people with a formal channel to engage in UN intergovernmental work as members of their national delegations. You don't get closer to policymaking than that. Looking back, I think it's great to see that the program has expanded significantly over the past decades, from a handful of youth delegates in the year 2000s to a lot more now. And the Third Committee has long been the primary platform where the youth delegates actively contribute, taking part in informal negotiations, delivering statements, bringing youth perspectives directly into the center of multilateral discussions. And this conversation that we'll be having today also builds on that broader effort to strengthen meaningful youth engagement across the UN's social and cultural pillars, including through the ECOSOC Youth Forum. Some of you might have been there. I think I see some faces in the room that I met earlier this year at the Youth Forum. And, you know, I'm very pleased to tell you that that Youth Forum brought together more than 1,000 young people, with a record number of 107 youth delegates from 40 member states. And that, I think, is an inspiring demonstration exactly of how young people, governments, civil society organizations, and the UN can work together to shape and act on shared priorities. And the energy and the ideas that emerged from the Youth Forum continue to guide initiatives Like the event today. It is the first time that we meet with young people under the auspices of the Third Committee, and that doesn't come by itself. It came because young people pushed for it.

So I'd like to thank you for that.

And we would like to keep working to ensure that youth perspectives remain at the heart of the UN's work, including here in the Third Committee. Let me mention briefly also how this year is also a milestone moment, because 2025 does mark the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth, as we heard earlier, and I think it's such a good thing we should repeat it. I mean, again, we had a great event a couple of weeks ago to commemorate that. That Programme of Action is a framework that has guided global efforts on youth development for those 3 decades. Looking ahead to the Second World Summit for Social Development in November in Qatar, as Cynthia also talked about, we see how youth voices will continue to be critical in advancing social development. In 1995, at the First World Social Summit, a number of very important topics were adopted, discussed and adopted among member states that keep shaping the way we do social development today. For example, the whole concept of decent work. Now we take it for granted.

We could not—

we did not take it for granted in '95. I should tell you, I know because I was there. I was a youth delegate at the Social Summit in 1995. Pushing for some of these questions that, you know, that we now see translated into policies, into realities, in communities all over the world. So it, you know, it matters and it means something what you do as young people and how you put your issues into the discussions that we are having. So today's event is part of that continuum. It's a reminder that inclusive intergenerational dialogue strengthens not only the work of this committee, but also the broader efforts to build trust in multilateralism. So by listening and by working alongside young people, we can put forward policies that are more responsive, more equitable, and future-ready. Thank you. Thank you.

I thank the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination for her remarks. I now invite Mr. Sameh Kamel and Ms. Yugratna Srivastava of the Major Group for Children and Youth to deliver a statement.

Thank you very much, Your Excellency. Good afternoon, everyone. I know it's very late in the day, and for all these people following us online, I know it's also very late, so let's just do a quick 5-second activity. If you can hear me, clap once. If you can hear me, clap twice. Okay, excellent. Now I have your attention. All right, I would like to begin by expressing our deepest gratitude to the Chair of the Third Committee, His Excellency Ambassador of Thailand, and the Secretariat of the Committee for convening this special event today, and also to all our distinguished speakers in this panel and in other panels throughout the day today. Your presence today throughout your extremely busy schedules shows that you and your organizations are truly committed to meaningful youth engagement, so thank you very much. My name is Samih. Along with my colleague, Yugratna, we are the 2 elected organizing partners of the Major Group for Children and Youth, and we're very happy to be here speaking to you today. The Major Group for Children and Youth serves as a designated self-organized space for youth to engage in over 150 processes inside the United Nations. MGCY has a membership of over 20,000 youth organizations around the world, and the Youth Coordination Team convened by MGCY comprises of global focal points of more than 35 constituencies in the UN system, including but not limited to constituencies like YONGU, the youth constituency of the UNFCCC process, Global Youth Indigenous Caucus, Migration Youth and Children Platform, Global Youth Health Caucus, and many more. Today, we are making history by creating a dedicated space within the Third Committee for open dialogue between member states, young people, and civil society organizations on the pressing social and cultural issues that define our time. Let me tell you that, as Ms. Keita was just talking about Leave No One Behind, we don't have people just inside the UN building today, but we also have people from different countries and communities online who will be intervening alongside with us. Excellencies, Our event today is a call that engagement of children and youth must be universal and equitable at all levels. This gathering is not just a standalone initiative. It builds upon the contrib— and contributes to the continued progress towards meaningful youth engagement across the UN system, including the 2025 ECOSOC Youth Forum, which brought together over 2,000 participants. The journey of youth, however, is incomplete without talking about the broader disclosure of civil society engagement. While the youth constituencies are active in— are actively involved in implementing Chapter 4 of the Pact through the 3 task forces co-chaired by young people, youth and civil society need to be included across all Pact working groups and the upcoming 2028 Pact review process from inception. Finally, over the past couple of years, we have been continuously calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in all conflicts across the world. Children and youth cannot, and I repeat, cannot continue to be the mass casualties of military-industrial complexes. Therefore, we welcome the efforts that are currently taking place to ensure sustainable and long-lasting peace towards stopping the suffering of not only children and youth, but also ensuring the rights to basic needs like food, clean water and sanitation, health, education, etc. On this note, I would like to hand it over to my colleague, Yugratna, for her remarks.

Thank you very much, Sami, and I'll be brief since we have to conclude the opening panel soon. Building on what Sami said, I think as we convene here today, it is very important to highlight that engagement of young people in the Third Committee is not a new exercise. Young people continue to be designated stakeholder groups across several UN processes linked to the work of the Third Committee, whether that is CSW, whether that is the Disability Conference of Parties, whether that is the Permanent Forum of Indigenous Issues, and many other processes that you would hear about today. As an example, young people were also credited towards initiating the process that led to the historic advisory opinion on climate change by the International Court of Justice earlier this year. Colleagues, we continue to talk about reform process underway as part of UN@80. When UN75 happened 5 years ago, it gave young people a process of— a promise of reinvigorated multilateralism. It generated our Common Agenda, the Pact for the Future, and many subsequent processes. The UN@80 cannot take away that promise. It must strengthen and not backslide the work that is being done by UN agencies, especially UN agencies in the region and countries on youth issues. The reforms must not affect staff especially working on youth and civil society issues, and major groups and other stakeholders must have direct ways to input to the process that is being undertaken. Excellencies, meaningful youth engagement has to continue to move from theory to action. We continue to embrace diversity in which young people organize on local level. While we welcome, of course, the high-level meetings that are being organized, including on youth and a lot of number of different issues. What we really need are meetings that are designed with and by young people, spaces like these, spaces like ECOSOC Youth Forum, which actually co-convened and co-created with young people. ECOSOC Youth Forum, which is the largest youth forum and convening of youth within the UN system, should be more aligned with the work of the GA committees and must serve as a platform for annual youth-led stocktake of Pact for the Future. The strength and mandate of the Youth Forum as reaffirmed by Pact for the Future and the ECOSOC HLPF Review in 2023, only strengthen its role and its importance in the UN system. Finally, achieving sustainable development requires equitable distribution of power and resources, and we reiterate our call that was made by young people throughout the processes this year— FFD4, Tax Committee, and many other processes— that it is the time to establish a multilateral legal framework that addresses unsustainable debt, including debt cancellation, and include young voices in the boards of multilateral development banks. The generations of today and tomorrow should not have to bear consequences of debt that are crippling, frankly crippling, Global South countries globally. I thank you.

Samia Yaqoob, thank you very much for your Thank you, Mr. President, for that thoughtful statement. Once again, I thank all the speakers for your contributions at the start of our session this afternoon. Colleagues, our deliberations today will comprise 2 panel segments, each to be followed by an interactive discussion. We shall first hold the first segment on youth and social development in the Third Committee. We'll then hear from the second segment on building shared pathways to progress, youth engagement, and the future of multilateralism. Before we proceed with the presentations, allow me to mention some organizational matters. Participants in the room who intend to make comments or Those who would like to pose questions are invited to press the microphone button on the console in front of you after the floor is opened by the co-moderators for the interactive discussions of each segment. Those joining this meeting virtually will be added to the list and interspersed in the discussion. In order to hear from as many speakers as possible in the limited time available, interventions will be limited to 2 minutes per intervention. And I now invite the co-moderators and the panelists of the first panel to take their seats on the podium. The first panel will begin very shortly. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Ambassador.

Thanks very much. Thank you. Colleagues, please kindly take your seats. We shall now begin the first segment on youth and social development in the Third Committee. I am indeed pleased to welcome the co-moderators, Ms. Loretta Chingandu of the CSW Thank you, Mr. President. I would like to welcome the UNW Youth Consistency Group and Gender Youth Caucus, major group of children and youth, and Ms. Huda Halim, youth advocate from Libya, as well as the distinguished speakers for this segment. Welcome. I give the floor to the co-moderators to conduct the discussion. I wish you productive deliberations. The floor is yours.

Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you so much, Chair. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, fellow youth advocates, major groups and stakeholders, colleagues and friends, good afternoon and thank you so much for being here today. Now, Dr. Sami beat me to this, but I would love for us to do another exercise. Before we begin, I would love for us to center our energy around the theme that brings us here together, and I would love for us to say together, building solutions together for an inclusive future. Let's say it: building solutions together. Building solutions together for an inclusive future. Thank you, that's beautiful. And that's exactly what this moment is about— building together, learning together, and leading together across generations, across nations, and across the many stories that shape who we are. Now, let's begin with a question that echoes through these very United Nations walls. What does it take to make history at the United Nations? Sometimes it takes a treaty, sometimes a resolution, but today it takes young people and everybody in this room and online. So welcome to a moment unlike any other. Welcome to history in the making. And I say history in the making because for the very first time, the Chair of the Third Committee, as well as the Major Group for Children and Youth, Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President. Today's youth event sends a clear yet powerful message in the context of the Third Committee that children and young people, who for so long have been treated as mere beneficiaries of policy, are now recognized as partners in progress and co-authors of solutions for dignity, for development, and for justice. So let's take a moment to applaud that achievement. Thank you so much. My name is Loretta Chingandzu, as already introduced. I am a social justice and gender equality youth advocate, and I'm a proud member of the Major Group for Children and Youth, CSW Youth Constituency. I come from a beautiful country called Zambia, where my journey in advocacy began with grassroots organizations like the Center for Young Leaders in Africa, where we believe in advocating, educating, and inspiring the next generation of young leaders to engage in governance, civic participation, and community development. Now, I'm honored to serve as one of your moderators for this session, and it is my privilege to guide the flow of this conversation. I'm also delighted to be joined by my colleague here, Yuda Alorosi, who brings a perspective of a dedicated youth advocate from Libya.

Thank you so much, Loretta. Hello everyone, I am Houda Al-Arousi, a youth advocate from Libya, and I am truly honored to be with you here and to co-moderate this groundbreaking event. As a young person from a conflict— conflict-affected community, I know firsthand how crucial it is to have our voices heard in these halls. My 7 years of experience in peacebuilding with the Dialogue and Debate Association taught me how a lot— taught me a lot about us, about youth. We are fighters by nature. Even in the toughest context and the most challenging environments, we have the spirit and most importantly the will to solve problems and bridge divides, to create a better future for us and for the next generations. As Her Excellency Ms. Björk mentioned, we sometimes forgot— forget how long was the journey But today's session is the product of years of groundwork, a groundwork that have brought youth to the forefront of the Third Committee's agenda. Youth engagement has been steadily growing, and young people have already been making the work across the social, humanitarian, and cultural agenda of the UN in several ways. Across the UN processes, from the CRPD Conference of States various parties, UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, and the CSW Youth Forum, young people are recognized as formal stakeholder group shaping global policy. Through networks like the MGCY, Water Youth Network, and UNESCO SDG for Youth and Students Network, youth voices are coordinated across social and development agendas. They have co-created milestones like the General Comment No. 26 on children's rights and the environment, and continue to co-chair the Global Youth Compact on Humanitarian Action. Grassroots youth movements even drove the UNGA request for an ICJ advisory opinion on climate change, proving youth can influence international law. Youth engagement has also deepened through the National Youth Delegates and dedicated dialogues affirming that youth are not just tomorrow's leaders, but they are in fact leading today. Thank you so much.

And now with that context, we're pleased to invite this panel of this segment who will explore the intersection of youth and various social and cultural issues under the remit of the Third Committee. We're thrilled to have 3 outstanding youth leaders with us today to spark this conversation. I'm joined by Naghma Shretha, representing the International Association of Youth and Students for Peace, Mr. Ali Mustafa from the International Organization of Youth, and Mr. Jas Križnek, UN Youth Delegate of Slovenia. They will share their insights on how young people are driving progress on social inclusion and fundamental dignity for all, and how we can better bridge the gap between policy processes here in New York and the realities on the ground. Colleagues, to honor floor time, we'll keep our remarks to 5 minutes. I'll signal at the 4-minute mark with a gentle cue, and then the floor will later be opened with your questions— for your questions and perspectives. So I'd love to start off with Naghma Shretha. So as we witness a global rise in youth engagement, What are some of the essential skills and values that young people need to constructively contribute to social development? From your perspective, how can the UN system and its partners who are here today better foster an environment that empowers young people to build inclusive communities in line with the goals of the Third Committee?

Thank you, co-moderators, Excellencies, and all the inspiring young changemakers in this room. My name is Nagma Shrestha. I am the United Nations Representative for International Association of Youth and Students for Peace, or IAYSP. I'm also a former Miss Universe Nepal. It fills my heart with hope to see this room alive with youth voices. When young people come together with purpose, you can feel the energy lift. And through intergenerational teamwork, that energy moves from passion to results. Last month, my country Nepal showed what that looks like in real life. On September 8th, young people, especially Gen Z, rose across the nation, guided by the spirit of civic responsibility, calling for accountability, transparency, and an end to systemic corruption. Within 48 hours, the Prime Minister resigned. On 12 September, Honorable Sushila Karki, former Chief Justice, was sworn in as interim Prime Minister, becoming the first woman to lead our nation. Elections have been set for March 5th, 2026. We wish Madam Prime Minister strength as she steers reforms and helps the country heal and move forward. Amid hardships, the resilience of Nepali people has been remarkable. Our shared courage, hope, and commitment to good governance continues to guide the path towards national healing. That change came at a heavy cost. Many lives were lost. As assessments continued, reports confirmed that 76 people, mostly young, young Gen Z students and youth, some were in their school uniforms as well, were killed, and more than 2,300 were injured during the September 8th and 9th unrest. May their souls rest in peace and may their sacrifices not be in vain. Amen. And Nepal is not alone. Across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, intergenerational movements led by youth are calling for dignity, accountability, and a meaningful say in public life. That moment was not only about protest, it was about possibility. It reminded us that youth are not waiting on the sidelines. We are ready to build, ready to serve, and ready to hold our leaders and ourselves to greater standards. However, young people's anger at injustice can either burn down or build up. And if we want this spirit to last, we need to start with peace education. Peace education is practical. It is learning how to deal with people, how to listen, how to disagree without hate, and how to come up with solutions for problems together. It teaches us to protect the dignity of every person in our families, in our school, and in our public life. We also need a different kind of leadership, leadership that is not being in charge. It is about seeing the potential in others and lifting them up with integrity. Every young person carries a unique gift. When the gift— when that gift meets a real need, service begins and impacts grows locally, regionally, and globally. Programs like IAYSP's Peace Designers show that the fiery passion of youth doesn't need to be suppressed; it needs to be guided. When we channel that energy toward constructive, nonviolent action, it becomes a creative force for peace and positive change. Youth teams pick a real challenge, such as mental health or gender-based violence, then design and test a solution with their community. They keep it measurable and simple. For example, the number of girls who feel safe at school or the number of disputes resolved through dialogue. It is small, it is local, and it works. That is transformative peace. It is not only the absence of conflict, it is the steady redesign of relationship and systems so that dignity can endure. To the question, what can UN system and its partners do to help in a way that feels real and doable? Teach peace in schools, not as a chapter in a book, but as daily practice with simple ways to track changes, such as incidents resolved through dialogue or inclusion surveys. Pair each global initiative with one youth-led local solution so young people help design how policies land in real communities. Back youth-led ideas with mentorship and visibility, not just grants, so promising pilots can scale across borders. Remember that peace is the foundation of SDGs. Without safety and dignity, nothing can take root. There is a deeper reason this matters. Our world is interconnected. Each of us is a small reflection of a larger whole.

Thank you, Naghma. Thank you. Just for the sake of time.

Oh, okay.

Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you for reminding us that civic engagement is more than participation, and it's a practice built on empathy, on accountability, and courage. And I think we need leadership that embodies that. So thank you so much. I will now move to Mr. Ali Mustafa. Mr. Mustafa, your question is, I know IOY recently convened the 12th International Youth Conference, of which I also had the privilege to participate. And this is during the UN at 80 session that just ended, and it brought together over 300 young people from various regions. You were also a participant at the ECOSOC Youth Forum 2025. What are some of the recommendations that are coming from young people on issues that they are most affected within the purview of the Third Committee? And especially issues around social inclusion, culture, and promoting fundamental dignity for all.

Thank you. Excellencies, Chair of the Third Committee, distinguished delegate, and fellow youth leaders, good afternoon. I stand before you today not just as an advocate, but as a messenger of grassroots young people who have been fighting for their rights and creating solutions for decades at the community level. The message I bring is urgent, and it is drawn from the youth policy framework we recently consolidated. Our collective insight is this: fundamental dignity for youth is not an abstract concept. It is the sum of our inclusion, our well-being, and economic security. Before we discuss policies, we must acknowledge who is left behind. We are fighting for the millions of underprivileged youth whose potential is systematically denied because they lack the basic foundations of opportunities. The harsh reality is that dignity is impossible when millions of brilliant young minds lack access to proper education. Their genius is is stifled not by a lack of will, but the lack of resources. The digital divide is locking out an entire generation, leaving countless young people with no access to the internet and therefore no access to the global economy or modern policy dialogue. Basic human rights are violated daily, with young people lacking access to basic necessities, safe water, consistent healthcare, and secure environment. Grassroots individuals are the true experts on resilience. They are the ones who have been innovating on the ground for decades. Our recommendations are simply the mechanism to elevate their solution. First issue, social inclusion, and our recommendation is that young people recommend that member states establish structural measures such as policy provisions and quotas to guarantee the inclusion of community delegates and significantly increase the availability of travel grants and logistics support to ensure they are not just invited but systematically present. Secondly, there can be no dignity when young people are suffering in silence. Our generation is facing a severe mental health crisis worsened by trauma, economic uncertainty, and lack of accessible confidential services. Our recommendation is simple. We call for the creation of government-sponsored youth-friendly mental health centers and helplines that offer free confidential counseling and support. Finally, dignity is shattered by the violence and conflict, young people are not just victims, they are powerful agents of peacebuilding and are often first to engage in reconciliation and mediation. We urge member states to invest in dedicated youth-led policy-building initiatives. This includes providing specific funding for young mediators and integrating youth voices into all levels of national and regional security dialogues. Excellencies, with these policy recommendations, our ultimate goal is to move past the incremental change that has failed so many and usher in what we call the Fourth Era. In closing, we, the International Organization of Youth, propose that the UN system, member states, and civil society stakeholders adopt a resolution and corresponding legislative framework to fundamentally change global governance. This framework must not only mandate the inclusion of marginalized and underprivileged, underrepresented grassroots communities in all UN processes, discussions, and decisions, but must also logistically and financially support their participation. In support of this agenda, we commit to working immediately with youth leaders, Experts, in consultation with grassroots communities, to produce a detailed draft resolution. We intend to formally propose this youth-led document to the UN system and member states by the end of May 2026. This concrete step towards the age of equity, the 4th era, the age of dignity. Thank you.

Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Ali. I think what you've shared echoes the reality that young people aren't waiting to be included. They're already shaping inclusion from the ground up, and that there can never be dignity if we leave this demographic dividend behind. Moving on to Mr. Jas Kržnek. You're one of the UN Youth Delegates of Slovenia, and please pardon me for butchering your name, and you're actively working to bring Eastern European youth perspectives into your country's position in Third Committee negotiations. What are the issues under the purview of the Third Committee that impact young people from your country, and more specifically Eastern European region, and how are you taking action as a UN Youth Delegate to incorporate some of these issues in your country's position in the negotiations to bridge the gap between the processes in New York and those from where you come from?

Thank you for the questions and for the invitation to be a part of this distinguished panel and event. Dear Chair, dear Excellencies, our lives are reshaping in ways that few could have imagined even a few years ago. When I was younger, I wanted to change the world. Now that I've been in New York for nearly 3 weeks, I realize that changing the wording of a resolution is a good start. While Slovenia remains one of the safest countries in the world, many young people are increasingly uncertain about what the future holds. That is why the issues discussed in this committee such as education, employment, health, housing are not abstract topics to us. They are realities that define our lives. One area that is often overlooked is health, especially the mental part. As we mark today the World Mental Health Day, we must remember that health is the most important aspect of our lives. Young people today face enormous pressures. To perform, to adapt, to remain hopeful in uncertain times. We need to start taking mental health and youth well-being seriously. It also means establishing community-based initiatives that can complement national efforts. As an example of a good practice, we have established support groups for students where they can openly discuss their challenges and face them in a safe environment together with peers. Also, today's youth are not only worried about finding jobs, We are worried about finding quality jobs. Young people face precarious, short-term work that leaves them uncertain about their future. One good practice is student scholarships. They connect students with employers early on, offering them tax-exempt support during studies and a clear path to stable work afterwards. According to a study from 2025, 62% of students continue working for their student employer after graduation. In addition, even a good job is not enough if young people cannot afford a place to live. Between 2015 and 2023, housing prices in the European Union rose on average by 48%, and in Slovenia by over 86%. For many young people, independence into adulthood feels like a distant dream. Europe is also in the midst of a conflict that has global consequences. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused immense suffering, displacement, and uncertainty in Ukraine and for its people. It has impacted young people not only there, but across the world. This invasion reminds us that peace and stability are the foundation for any progress in youth development. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of United Nations Security Resolution 2250, which recognized the important role of young people in promoting international peace and security. At the same time, we are also navigating a massive technological shift. Just 3 years ago, ChatGPT didn't even exist, but now it has more than 800 million weekly users. Most of them are between 18 and 34 years old. Young people are not only adapting to change, we are implementing it. The question is no longer what is AI, but how can we use it responsibly and inclusively to not create even more disparities within our communities. As the UN Youth Delegate of Slovenia, my role is to serve as both a voice of representation here, but also as a representative of UN youth activities to my community at home. I want to share with you 2 examples of how I have been involved in changing my community. First, last year we organized a trip to UN offices in Vienna for youth. We did that not only to talk about the UN, but to show them what it actually looks like. Secondly, I would like to share an even more personal experience. For more than 20 years, Slovenia has hosted quadrille dance festivals celebrating high school graduates, also held in many European cities. You have to understand that celebrating the end of secondary school education is a big thing in Slovenia. 6 years ago, the organizers began charging students €60 just to participate and dance in the city center. We, the students, felt this wasn't fair, so we collected more than 6,000 signatures of youth, and presented them to the mayor. As a result, the mayor withdrew the organizer's license. Now, young people and me as the leader organize this event every year, completely free of charge, for more than 3,000 people every year. Young people need to be proactive because change happens there. I work actively as a student representative on the issues which I have pointed out before. Fighting for youth inclusion within the UN system is a noble function that that can strengthen and make the system even more representative of our societies. That is why this youth program and events such as these need to happen more often. I hope that the new youth resolution will also recognize this need. It is important that we do not just talk about frameworks and programs. This room is full of youth that is itching about changing the world. We have the opportunities readily available. We just need to take them. That is why I just have one more message: young people are not only leaders of tomorrow, we are also partners today. Thank you.

Thank you so much. Indeed, young people are not just leaders of tomorrow, we're leading today, and I really love how you beautifully bridge policy and lived experiences. I think that reminds us that when national priorities integrate youth, realities, the outcomes are far more grounded and transformative. At this point, ladies and gentlemen, I would draw— I'd love to hand over the floor to my co-moderator who would lead us to the next segment of this session. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Loretta, and the panel. Now we will open the floor for the interactive dialogue, but before that, allow me to remind you of the guiding questions of this session. First, where and how are young people affected by issues within the purview of the Third Committee? Second, what has changed in the past few years that makes this conversation more urgent than before? Where do you see the biggest disconnect between that— between what we discuss here in New York and what young people are experiencing on the ground? And fourth, what are the issues and opportunities that member states could advance during this committee sessions. Moreover, I would like to notify you, those of you who would like to intervene with, with us in this dialogue, to press the mic button in front of them, and the automatic list will pop up here, and we will call you according to that. Second, please limit your interventions to 2 minutes. The mics will cut off automatically after that period. So without further ado, let me call to the floor the distinguished delegation of Italy.

Excellencies, distinguished delegates, fellow youth representative, it is an honor to speak today as the youth delegate of Italy to the United Nations. The essence of our work is encapsulated in what we call the Y-Share, which stands as Y for youth and is read as the question why, a reminder that our role is to interrogate the deeper motives of international action, to transform dialogue into shared solutions, and to institutionalize best practices. As the Committee addresses the social and human development agenda, we must recall that sustainable progress cannot exist without peace, justice, and inclusion. These are not abstract ideals. They are preconditions for human dignity and the enablers of the achievement of every goal. The Youth Peace and Security Agenda, anchored in UN Security Council Resolution 2250, which turns 10 this year, reminds us that young people are not only a question to be dealt with, but agents of prevention, mediation, and reconstruction. Excellencies, across the world, youth are building communities after conflict, leading social innovation, and restoring trust in institutions. Yet too often, the gap between what is discussed in these halls and what is lived on the ground remains wide. We therefore call for intergenerational multilateralism, one that listens before deciding, includes before legislating, and empowers before prescribing. Because the strength of our common future depends on the courage to make decision-making truly participatory, truly representative, truly humane and accountable. Since solutions, to be truly innovative, shall reflect the realities that youth face and the proposals they advance. Let's not forget that every issue concerns youth, for it is our generation that will live with the consequences of the choices made Thank you.

And we would now like to invite the representative of COS, Kinderdorf International. The seat number is 187.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, young people, thank you for giving us the floor. I'm speaking today on behalf of SOS Children's Villages International, an organization supporting children and young people without parental care or at risk of losing it. Many of us in this room had the privilege of having loving families and social safety nets to rely on during the difficult transition period of reaching adulthood. For young people without parental care is a different reality that I would like to shed a light on today, as their rights and needs are often overlooked at both global and national policies. In many countries, care leavers face structural barriers when they turn 18, including lack of access to housing, education, and employment. Without a stable support system to fall back on, they are more vulnerable to long-term unemployment, which increases the risk of homelessness, poor physical and mental health, and deeper poverty. At SOS Children's Villages, through our YouthCAN program, we're supporting young people to become self-reliant and achieve socioeconomic independence through mentorships, soft and hard skills training, and exposure to practical work experience. In 2024 alone, we reached 23,000 young people in 48 countries by working with almost 400 partners, and we're looking to scale up adaptable and evidence-based solutions to create bigger impact in the future. Youth participation is central to YouthCan's success, as young people play an active role in shaping the program to better reflect their needs and preferences. Youth care leavers presented at this year's ECOSOC Youth Forum a declaration calling on governments to: 1, support their transition to autonomy; 2, provide economic support and housing programs; 3, to expand educational and employment opportunities; 4, guarantee physical and mental health and psychosocial support; 5, provide adequate social protection measures; and 6, involve young people in decision-making. Finally, the Third Committee addresses many issues relevant to young people, and many resolutions will be adopted this year that has the potential to improve their Thank you.

I would like to call— I would like to call the distinguished representative of Tunisia online, but please, from those who are intervening from the hall, please raise your voice as much as possible so we all can hear you clearly.

Thank you. Thank you, Honorable Chairmanship, distinguished delegates. I'm truly honored to be with you today, and allow me to begin with saying this to all of you: youth doesn't exist. Yes, I know what I'm saying. Youth doesn't exist. As Pierre Bourdieu once said, there is not one single youth but many youths, each shaped by their own social realities, opportunities, and constraints. And to the some familiar faces I see here today, and I, who I have had the privilege of meeting in New York or elsewhere, I would say this: what we often discuss in these halls does not always reflect what young people are living on the ground. In many communities, youth engagement remains an ideal and not a practice.

The will of inclusion is strong, but the mechanisms of participation are still weak.

If we truly want to advance social development through the Third Committee, we must move beyond speaking about young people and start by creating policies by, with, and for them. Policies that reflect plurality, their inequalities, and their lived experiences. So the real question for us today is, how can we design mechanisms and policies that truly respond to all these questions and to all these different youthss with double S, and not just one imagined version of them. Thank you.

Thank you to the distinguished delegation of Tunisia. I would like now to invite to the floor the representative of Youth and Disabilities Empowerment Platform From the online floor as well. In the meantime, I would like to invite the distinguished delegation of Mexico.

Distinguished Chair, Excellencies, and fellow delegates, it's an honor to take the floor as part of the Mexican Youth Delegation and also as a young woman from the Global South. I can say that the issues discussed by the Third Committee are not abstract debates for us. They are a part of daily realities. Being here is a privilege, and we recognize that by being the only youth delegation of Latin America present. The ability to raise our hands and be heard is a privilege. I believe we must all be conscious of the power we hold. Thank you. Not only in spaces like this, which can sometimes feel like more selective and discursive than active, but also in our local communities, in the daily actions we take with the person next to us. So let us use this privilege with responsibility and compromise to build for everyone, not just for a few, because we all share the same earth. We all are humans, and we all deserve to grow with the same opportunities regardless of our origin, our languages, or academic backgrounds. Yet too often youth participation ends at the consultative stage. We are invited to share our perspectives but rarely to shape implementation or follow-up. This limits the credibility of the very system we deeply believe in. The Third Committee could bridge this gap. If we truly want to achieve inclusive and sustainable development, we must go beyond listening. We must act together as a family that shares the same home. Let us not only raise our voices but raise our impact. Thank you.

Thanks to the distinguished representative We would like now to give the floor to the representative of Gray Panthers, seat number 70. There's no mic. His mic is— no, his mic is not on.

Partnerships and hard work.

Excuse me?

Your mic is not on, so I would like to repeat that we're now giving the floor to Grey Painters, seat number 70.

Thank you, co-moderators. My name is James Lee, and I serve as chair of Democracy Committee at London School of Economics Student Union. Many young people, especially university students, feel disconnected from the United Nations. Information about UN work and opportunities rarely reaches our campus. For example, I don't think any of the UK universities received this event's information. And yet universities are where youth attention, ideas, and energy are concentrated. Universities are a place where UN can inspire the young people, not only seeking a job, but also to engage with the big questions of our time. Peace, solidarity, and sustainable development. To bridge this gap, I propose organizing more inter-university global events in partnership with the UN, and if possible, establishing a global elected youth committee, a formal network of students and youth representatives who meet annually through online participation and open voting. This mechanism could democratize youth engagement, ensure continuity and give millions of students a general sense of belonging in global decision-making by actually voting the representatives. For example, my country, China, do not have a youth delegate program, so I think that could open more engagement on the youth. And the future is in our hand, the hand of the youth, and we should make the shared dream of humanity becoming true.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you so much. We would like to reintroduce the representative of Grey Panthers, seat number 70. Thank you.

My presentation on behalf of the constituency of older persons is really an invitation. We all know that progress for humanity cannot occur without partnerships and hard work. Every single one of us is aging, including every child and every youth. This is the common denominator of humanity. Linking age and youth in action is always a critical aspect of Momentum. Each one of us knows from personal experience how important these intergenerational connections are with respect to learning, wisdom, stability, and growth. We, the constituency of older persons, are eager to strengthen partnership with younger persons and with future generations. The young people of today are the older persons of tomorrow. Will you work with us to create a better world? We all know of the deep bonds between the generations. There is great power to mobilize these relationships. You may know that older persons currently constitute approximately one billion people globally. That number will soon exceed the number of younger persons. It makes perfect sense that age and youth in action can create a world that enhances the quality of life for everyone, including our constituencies. Some of our common concerns include respect, inclusion, ensuring a seat at the table, creativity, collaborations, the need to eradicate extreme poverty, opportunities in overcoming discrimination, including ageism. With the 2030 deadline for achieving the SDGs rapidly approaching, intergenerational cooperation that leverages the expertise of young and old is the only way forward. We start through dialogue between young and old, including providing space for Thank you.

Thank you so much. Thank you. We would like to thank you also for reminding us of the importance of our collective efforts to create a better world for everyone. And now I will give the floor to the distinguished representative of Germany. Thank you. Georgia from the online floor. I don't know if that would be— you can go to German. Okay. For technical issues, we would like to invite the distinguished representative of Germany.

Thank you, Chair. We address you as the 21st generation of German UN Youth Delegates, and we stand here not to ask for your recognition, but to remind you of the commitments you have already made to our generation. We have seen a generation of young people showing up in these very rooms, youth delegates who bring expertise, courage, and uncomfortable truth. And we have brought one ourselves. Too often, our inclusion ends when the meeting does, because our impact remains limited by our— your hesitation to practice what you preach. If we truly believe in inclusion, Then the UN Youth Delegate Programme must reflect that belief, broaden it so that it reaches beyond privilege and geography to include the young voices too often unheard. And if we truly believe that youth are partners, then the youth programmes must be adequately and sustainably funded, not the first to be cut when budgets tighten. Because participation without resources is participation without power. We, the youth, are not waiting for permission to care about our world. We already are shaping it in climate movements, in human rights advocacy, in rebuilding trust where institutions have failed. What we ask of you is simple: be trustworthy to us. Move from symbolic participation to shared responsibility, because only when you see youth not as a checkbox but as a constituency, only then can this institution live up to its Dear leaders, we are not the problem to be managed. We are your partners in rebuilding trust, your allies in renewing the UN, and your co-authors of the future. So the question is not whether youth is ready. The question is, are you? Thank you.

Thank you so much. I invite to the floor The representative of Youth with Disabilities Empowerment Platform from the online floor.

Thank you, Moderator. Your Excellencies, Mr. Chair, fellow delegates, and online participants, good afternoon. On behalf of the Youth with Disabilities Empowerment Platform here in Mauritius, we are honored to be able to have our voices heard. When we talk about youth and social development, we always say leave no one behind. But for millions of young persons with disabilities around the world, being left behind is a lived reality. Youth with disabilities are directly affected by every issue under this Committee, be it education, employment, gender equality, and social protection. Yet their participation remains limited because many systems are designed without accessibility in mind or representation. This conversation is urgent today because the social and digital transformations of recent years have deepened exclusion worldwide. Many policies have not kept pace with technology, climate change, or post-pandemic realities, and as a result, many young persons with disabilities are completely disconnected from education, decent work, and public life. The biggest gap between discussions here and experiences on the ground remains implementation. It is true that commitments are being made internationally, but the truth is that they rarely reach communities. And real change can only be advanced by embedding disability inclusion across all youth policies, investing in youth-led initiatives, ensuring consultation mechanisms are accessible, and including youth with disabilities in policymaking and monitoring systems. Our recommendations to start with are therefore to always include youth with disabilities in national youth councils and advisory bodies, And youth development initiatives must always be designed and budgeted for physical, digital, and communication accessibilities. Excellencies, the truth is that youth with disabilities are not a separate group within development. They are part of the solution, and inclusion must be built into systems, not merely added as an afterthought. We are ready to contribute and to design in the delivery of policies that affect our lives, What we need now are structures that allow us to do so. Inclusion is not an option, it is a responsibility. Let's act on it. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I now call the distinguished delegation of Romania.

Hello, youth representatives. esteemed colleagues, as the UN Youth Delegate of Romania, I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to contribute to this valuable discussion today. I am currently 24 years old and engaged in diplomatic affairs for my country, a path that I chose and one that I adore. But I was also 14, anxiously entering high school. I was 18, starting a bachelor's degree and becoming involved in social action initiatives. I was 22, excitedly commencing my master's. and consistently looking for employment, and I've thankfully managed my way, but not everyone is as fortunate. I think that's something that we should all be aware of. Presently, 65 million young people worldwide are unemployed, and the challenge runs even deeper. In 2023, 256 million youth aged 15 to 24 were not in education, employment, or training, with young women disproportionately affected. These figures expose a critical and urgent need to address the structural barriers that continue to exclude youth particularly young women, from meaningful participation in the workplace and education systems. To reverse this trend, comprehensive and inclusive measures must be taken to reduce youth unemployment and support their integration into the labor market through the creation of decent work and productive employment opportunities. This requires the promotion of policies that ensure equal access to quality education, lifelong learning, and skills development, including digital and financial literacy. Particular attention should be given to expanding education and employment pathways in STEM fields, especially for youth in rural and remote areas, persons with disabilities, and women and girls. Equally essential is guaranteeing access to universal, adequate, and sustainable social protection systems. Yet despite all these obstacles, I know youth to be hopeful, determined, and deeply skilled. I trust in us. and in the generations rising behind us. We must not only listen to youth but act together with youth for our shared future to 2030 and beyond. Thank you.

Thank you. I now call the representative of the Asian Pacific Resource and Research Center for Women from the online floor.

Distinguished Chair, Excellencies, dear friends, it's a great honor to speak today on behalf of ERO and the APFS Youth Forum as a young representative from Uzbekistan, Central Asia.

It's already midnight here in Tashkent, and I think that itself shows that how important this event for us.

In my country, we have Youth Parliament under our National Parliament, real structure via young people can share their ideas and even propose changes to laws. As a member of this Parliament, I've seen how it prepares us to become future deputies and senators. We should not be seen as not just the participants in decision-making, but as active contributors. Earlier this year, youth from Asia-Pacific region came together to prepare a call to action We urged our governments to expand inclusive public health services, especially mental health support for young people with disabilities, because development must leave no one behind. We all see the world is going through difficult times. As youth, maybe we are not the ones making the final decisions yet, but we are building trust and friendship today through capacity-building programs, cultural exchange, and cooperation. We are laying the foundation for peace.

I have met many young people from different countries all around the globe.

We have shared ideas, worked together, become friends.

And when you become friends, do you know you don't go into conflicts?

You find solutions together. And that's why we call this friendship. As we say in Uzbekistan, it means that don't think youth are powerless. Just believe in us, just support us, and we will show you results that make you proud.

Thank you very much. Thank you. I would like now to give the floor to the distinguished delegation of Ukraine.

Chair, distinguished delegates, Today we have gathered here in New York to discuss issues related to social advancement and empowerment, particularly that of young people. And while this is certainly an important event, we cannot stay aside from what is happening in the world. I would like to show you this. This is a map of my country, Ukraine, and it is red. There is a particular reason for this. Right now, And this very second, it is again being attacked by Russia. Despite being thousands of miles away from my homeland, I look at this map and notifications every day, praying not to see people dead under the rubble or in hospitals because a war criminal somewhere in Moscow decided that he could dictate other countries how to live. Last night, me and my other fellow youth delegates attended a reception, and then Russia conducted one of the largest airstrikes on the Ukrainian critical infrastructure. Infrastructure, cutting half of my country's capital from power, leaving thousands of people without electricity, and injuring at least 12 civilians. This is what young people in my country go through every day. Yet despite these hardships, we continue to learn, innovate, and persist. Youth remains a driving force of any change, not just in my country but across the globe. And that's why I have a strong and clear call to action for you: speak, act, and resist. Speak for those whose voices need to be brought up internationally. Act to make our world a safer and more prosperous space, starting from your local communities. And resist to any kind of oppression or infringement upon your rights and freedoms, both as individuals and representatives of your countries. This is the only way we could uphold the ideals enshrined in the UN Charter. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I would like now to give the floor to the representative of New Future Foundation, seat number 32. Seat number 32. Yes, please go ahead. Just speak.

Thank you.

Sorry, can you please raise your hand? Okay, go ahead. Okay, thank you.

The Chair of the UNGA Third Committee, Your Excellencies, Member States present, Madam Executive Director of UNFPA, colleagues and fellow youth present, thank you. I am Rose Moonyeboa, a youth representative of the New Future Foundation headed by Queen Mother Dr. Delores Blakely, the Executive Director of Rose Moonyeboa Foundation, and a member of the UNMGCY. It has become a necessity for these dialogues and intervention at a time where the world is moving faster than our responses. Many a times the word inclusion is used to get youth into the room, but the question is, is the youth only to be included or do we need to be considered? To ensure decisions taken in New York by the General Assembly becomes a service and doorway to opportunity everywhere, my intervention raises 2 critical points. Such that a child in a high-rise and a leader in my village can both share in these experiences. First off, I respectfully propose to the Chair to consider an intergenerational learning and accessibility program of knowledge between the average youth bracket and the other generations outside of the age range. There exist intergenerational dialogues, but we can do better to strengthen this strategy to pour into the youth. The program will play a part to teach mentor and engage experienced professionals who are beyond age limits to mentor, sponsor, and pour into emerging leaders. In view of this, the program will ensure we do not lose great talent, experiences, and wisdom to retirement and age limits. Finally, it is important that I reiterate the UN should not be known for a place of more talks rather than a place of dialogue and action. After many petitions by the youth with partly positive feedback, unpaid 6-month internships still exist at the UN Secretariat. I humbly ask the UNGA Third Committee to support in making the call to adapting to this system. I wish you all a happy International Women's Day. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Australia, Number 87.

Thank you, Chair. Today I address you as Australia's Youth Delegate to the United Nations. Over the past year, I've met thousands of young Australians from across our vast continent— juvenile detention centers, regional desert towns still recovering from floods and fires, cities where rising living costs push youth onto the streets, to the Torres Strait where rising sea levels are literally washing away homes cultures, and futures. One reality has stood out clearly. For many young people, especially those living in poverty or extreme hardship, the UN feels distant. When young people are simply trying to put food on the table or access safe housing, high-level diplomacy can feel abstract, even irrelevant. But then, who does the UN serve, if not them, if not us? The UN often speaks of meaningful youth participation, yet consultation without influence can feel performative. To make youth engagement credible, it must translate into shared decision-making, transparent follow-up, and measurable outcomes. So the question I would pose to everyone in this room, and the UN system more broadly, is this: How can the UN design engagement mechanisms that not only consult young people, particularly those in marginalized and underrepresented groups, but integrate their insights and lived experiences into the policies and programs that directly affect them? Speaking from my patch of the world, the Asia-Pacific, I can proudly say that Australia's identity is built on diversity, on the diplomacy and care for our country practiced by Indigenous people for 60,000 years and more, and on our regional ties with the Pacific, where climate change is already forcing urgent questions about sovereignty, migration, and cultural survival. These are just some of the youth voices around the world which demand that multilateralism evolve, not as a ceremonial handshake governments, but as a system accountable to the communities that it claims to serve. Thank you.

Thank you so much. For the time's sake, the next intervention is going to be the last one for this segment, but I encourage those who would like to take the floor to request the participation in the next segment. Without further ado, I would like to invite the representative of CHIKKA Federation of India from the online floor.

Namaste, Honorable Chair, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, and fellow youth. I am Dr. Janhvi, a 19-year-old gender equality activist from India working with CHIKKA Federation of India and the founder of Girl Up CHIKKA. I began my journey at the age of 11 in spaces where girls were often told what they could not do. I started by asking questions, and over time those questions became movements, reaching thousands of young people who wanted to be heard. Across the world, youth face challenges under this committee's work: gender-based discrimination, unequal access to education, mental health struggles, and stigma. But we are not just affected, we are responding, innovating, and leading change from the ground up through our work. We have engaged young people in rural and marginalized communities to create spaces for dialogue, empowerment, and leadership. We focus on access to education, gender rights awareness, and social inclusion, showing that when youth are trusted, they can transform communities. In recent years, I have seen both hope and heartbreak. The pandemic deepened divides, but it also taught us the power of empathy, community, and connection. It made our generation realize that silence is no longer an option. Yet a gap remains between discussions here and realities on the ground. To bridge this, the youth must be true partners in policymaking with access to resources, mentorship, and trust. I urge the member states to inclusive education, gender justice, and digital equity, because real social development will only happen when young people are not spoken for but spoken with instead. Thank you.

Thank you very much and thank you to all our speakers and participants of this insightful discussion. I encourage those who— those of you who would like to speak to request the floor in the second segment and I would like now to return the floor to His Excellency the Chair of the Third Committee to continue with the proceedings. Thank you.

Thank you very much, our co-moderators, for your leadership and for guiding the discussion. And our speakers and participants, especially youth representatives, for your insightful contribution. Thank you very much. Let me invite the co-moderators and guest speakers for the second segment. We have only 1 hour left. To their seats. Please stay on the podium. The second segment will start very shortly. Thank you. Thank you very much. All right, colleagues, we are running out of time. We shall now begin the second segment on building shared pathways to progress for youth. Engagement and the future of multilateralism. I am pleased to welcome the co-moderators, Mr. Naween Kaltum, Global Focal Point for Communities Discriminated on Work and Decent Youth Constituency, Major Group for Children and Youth, and the Inclusivity Project, and Ms. Lizzer of the Global Focal Point Chemicals and Waste Youth Platform and co-lead of the UN Youth Fund Task Force and PAC for the Future Youth Working Group, as well as the distinguished speakers on my right-hand side for this segment. I wish to remind participants once again who wish to make comments I would like to remind all those who would like to ask or pose questions to press the microphone button on the console in front of you when the call moderators open the floor for the interactive discussion of the segment. Those participants joining virtually are already inscribed and will be interspersed in the discussion. Interventions will be limited again to 2 minutes in order to hear from as many speakers as possible. I shall now give the floor to the co-moderators to conduct the discussion. I wish you productive deliberations.

Thank you, His Excellency the Chair. Respected member delegates, distinguished participants, and fellow youth warriors for social justice, warm greetings for all. I'm Naveen Gautam, representing the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Dissent and Major Group of Children and Youth. And of course, it's both an honor and a responsibility to stand here, not merely as an individual, but as a voice amongst millions whose histories and hopes have too often been silenced due to the long-existing caste and decent-based discrimination we are facing. And as we gather to reflect on multilateralism and the road towards the World Social Summit, we must confront an uncomfortable truth: not all voices have been heard equally in our global system. Power, privilege, prejudices, and of course the whole notion of purity and pollution— it continues to shape who sits at the table and who remains outside the doors. The communities discriminated on work and descent, or also known as CDWD, they represent over 270 million people across the globe, who are Haratin in Mauritania, Osu in Nigeria, and many others in Africa. Roma in Europe, Dalits in South Asia, and Burakumin in Japan, Palenque and Quilombola in Latin America are others. And these communities are bound by a common legacy of caste-based exclusion, social stigma, and systemic economic and political marginalization. And for centuries, they have been denied dignity, access to land, access to education, decent work, and justice, and of course, the most important part, political representation, relegated to the most demeaning forms of labor and too often treated as less than human. For many young people from the community, discriminated on walk and descent and indigenous backgrounds. Merely reaching this space to speak, to be seen, to be acknowledged is an act of resistance. Yet today, their presence marks a turning point. The preparation for the World Social Summit presents a historical opportunity for all of us and to ensure that the social justice, social development, and the inclusion are not afterthoughts but the core of multilateral renewal. Through the Major Group of Children and Youth, we have witnessed a remarkable wave of youth-led mobilization, with more than 1,000 organizations across regions uniting to shape a collective agenda for justice and inclusion. From the Civil Society Conference in Nairobi to the ECOSOC Youth Forum, and of course the High-Level Political Forum, youth from the refugee camps, indigenous territories, caste-affected villages, and informal settlements have actually stood together, not as beneficiaries but as builders of new social contract which is building up strongly. And of course, youth have led consultations that influenced key UN processes, from setting engagements priority to guiding the revitalization of the United Nations Youth Fund. Under the Meaningful Youth Engagements core principles, we are redefining what participation actually means. The recent UN Women policy brief on communities discriminated on walk and descent is a major example of milestone achieved. And let me tell you, the process was led by young women from the communities. This is what renewed multilateralism actually means, and this is of course what it should look like in the future as well. Not a charity, but co-creation. Not inclusion as a favor, but justice as a right. And as we look towards World Social Summit, let us be very clear: those who have been historically excluded, including CDWD youth, must no longer be invited as observers but recognized as equal partners in shaping global decisions. And the fight against casteism, racism, and descent-based discrimination must be central to the agenda of social justice and human rights. And today, as I stand— of course, I'm sitting right now— here moderating this session alongside my co-moderator, Ms. Shannon Leesha. Our presence is itself a statement that we are reclaiming our rightful space in global discourse, because the future we are building is not one of silence, it's one of solidarity, it's one of dignity, and it's one about the power which is shared by all of us. And now I hand it over to my co-moderator, Ms. Shannon Leesha. Global focal point, chemical and waste Youth Platform. Shannon, the floor is yours. Thank you.

Thank you, Naveen. Fellow Youth Excellencies, delegates, good evening. I'm Shannon Lisa with the Chemicals and Waste Youth Platform. We are the youth constituency to the BRS Conventions, Minamata Convention, and Global Framework on Chemicals, and one of the 8 environmental constituencies of youth in the UN system. Our constituency brings youth voices to global processes on pollution because alongside global heating and biodiversity loss, Our world is becoming increasingly toxified, the risks and costs from industry passed on to our generation. Children are born today pre-polluted with heavy metals, PFAS forever chemicals, microplastics, and a cocktail of other hazardous substances that irreversibly harm developing brains and bodies. Young children, Indigenous youth, communities discriminated on work and descent, including young waste pickers, are among those most severely impacted, yet remain the least represented in decision-making spaces meant to protect their health and rights. I'm also here today as a representative of MGCY on the Secretary-General's Pact Implementation Working Group on Youth, wherein I serve as youth co-lead alongside DESA and the UN Youth Office on the UN Youth Fund Task Force. As we've heard reflected by speakers throughout our session, This has been a year of milestones for youth engagement across the United Nations. We saw the largest youth gathering ever at the UN during the 2025 ECOSOC Youth Forum in April. In September, we marked the 80th anniversary of the UN and 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action on Youth that convened the first-ever high-level meeting on youth during the General Assembly High-Level Week. And today we join here for the first-ever dedicated youth event under the UNGA Third Committee. These are not isolated moments, but the result of decades of consistent advocacy by the over 35 formal youth constituencies that have self-organized youth participation and policy contributions to more than 50 intergovernmental and 100 multi-stakeholder processes in the UN. Youth co-leadership has been at the heart of the Pact for the Future process, including the implementation phase, with UN entities and their youth constituency counterparts working together since the beginning of this year across 3 Pact Implementation Working Group on Youth task forces. As the task forces prepare to deliver their recommendations and outputs this month, we look to a present and future of multilateralism that builds on these structures, co-designed with youth, guided by our lived experiences, and accountable to the generations that will inherit its outcomes. It is in this spirit that we now turn to our panel discussion to explore what lies ahead for multilateralism, and the UN, and how youth and other key stakeholders can contribute to and actively shape its renewal. I thank our panelists for joining us in this dialogue. We have Director Sarah Lister of the UN Development Programme's Governance, Rule of Law and Peacebuilding Hub, Qatar Youth Delegate to the UN, Mr. Salem Al-Hetfa, and Mr. Matthew Kelson, Senior Human Rights Advisor for the International Disability Alliance. Panelists, you will each have 4 minutes to share your perspective on a question I pose to you, and welcome to all of you. Director Lister, I will start with you. UNDP has one of the largest portfolios on youth engagement in the UN, including on country-level implementation. Can you share examples of strategies and mechanisms that can ensure youth meaningful engagement in multilateral processes, and also highlight some of the key achievements of UNDP in this regard.

Thank you, Moderator, and thank you to the Chair of the Third Committee and to the Major Group for Children and Youth for the invitation to speak at this very important event. And I'd like to thank also all the young people who are here today in the room and online for giving your precious time to this conversation. I was sitting up at the back and listening to your many interventions, and I want to say thank you to you all. So, at UNDP, we recognize the critical importance of creating spaces and opportunities for young people to meaningfully engage and influence global processes. As many have already said today, youth are not just advocates for the future, they are changemakers today, and we see them leading— we see you leading climate action, driving digital innovation, and shaping more peaceful and inclusive societies. But recognizing that alone is not enough. We must continue to open doors, share decision-making spaces, and invest in youth empowerment across every forum, every policy, and at every level. Just 2 weeks ago, the High-Level Meeting on Youth at the UN General Assembly offered a powerful example of what meaningful youth engagement can look like. Member States called for more systematic inclusion and participation of young people in decision-making spaces. To answer your question, allow me to share 3 ways UNDP is advancing this call to action. First, institutionalizing youth participation. UNDP supports governments in developing and implementing national action plans on youth, peace, and security, embedding youth leadership into formal policy frameworks. Recent adoptions in The Gambia and Liberia are strong examples of translating global commitments into national policy. UNDP promotes safe spaces for dialogue, both online and offline. We support youth participation in political and civic spheres through national youth parliaments, caucuses and coalitions, online consultations and civic tech platforms. In Colombia, for example, UNDP and UNFPA partnered with 65 youth-led organizations to promote youth, especially young women, as peacebuilders. Second, co-designing youth empowerment. Young people must be seen as partners, not just beneficiaries, as you have already been saying today. UNDP prioritizes equal partnerships, ensuring young people are involved from agenda setting to implementation. participation. In Kenya and Guinea-Bissau, for instance, we've established youth sounding boards that give young people a direct voice in shaping UNDP programming aligned with national priorities. And third, we invest in youth leadership and capacity. Through the Youth for Climate initiative, co-led with the Government of Italy, we've invested some $4 million in seed funding, mentorship, and technical support for 150 youth-led solutions across more than 50 countries. Over 30,000 young people are now engaged through our digital platform app in 104 languages. Next week, its flagship event in Brasilia will spotlight youth innovations and promote inclusive climate action in the lead-up to COP. We also foster cross-sectoral partnerships with civil society, academia, the private sector, and youth networks to scale youth impact. In the lead-up to COP30, we are working closely with the COP30 presidency, UNFCCC, UNGO, and others to ensure youth voices help shape climate negotiations. And our collaboration with Samsung through the Generation17 initiative illustrates how digital storytelling can be used to amplify youth voices and drive meaningful engagement. Together, these efforts reflect our commitment to ensuring youth are not just included, but empowered to lead. So as we stand at this pivotal moment marking 80 years of the United Nations and preparing for the World Social Summit, let us together seize this opportunity to reimagine multilateralism with young people at its core. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Director, for highlighting those concrete strategies and mechanisms. Building on this, we'd now like to hear your perspective, Salem. As a young person from Qatar and as one of the first youth delegates of your country, what are your expectations from the World Social Summit and ensuring meaningful youth engagement at the summit? What steps is Qatar taking to advance youth action on

First of all, I'd like to thank you, Naveen and Shannon, for co-moderating this panel, and I'd like to thank MGCOI for this invitation and this distinguished panel. First of all, as a young person from Qatar and one of the first youth delegates representing Qatar in the United Nations, I expect the World Social Summit to go beyond symbolic— beyond beyond symbolic participation and initiate us as young leaders through the discussions and the tables. And I assure you and I'm confident to say that we are, as youth delegates, are part of the World Social Summit and going to be involved in the main discussions and part of the decision-making. Qatar has already made concrete moves in this direction. For example, we have the Youth Delegate to the United Nations Program. It trains young Qataris to represent Qatar, our country, at the UN high meetings.

We are not there just as observers.

We are also actively shaping international discussions and decisions.

We also have the national youth policies, the Youth Transcend in Doha.

It was developed with more than 66 government and semi-government entities to include youth participation from education, employment, culture, and sustainability. It ensures that young people are not just an afterthought but a driving force in the national development. One of the main initiatives is the one for the and Youth Excellence Strategy, Quality Life and Future Ready. Youth, it connects health, mental well-being, talent development with national goals, giving young people clear pathways to turn passion into skills, skills into leadership. Also, we have multiple global platforms, like next month in Doha, we are having the SLG, Student Leadership Global Summit. It brings leaders from all over the globe in Doha, the heart of Qatar.

Also, we have the Doha Youth Forum that happens yearly in December.

It brings every decision-making and leaders and heads of states at this meeting, the Doha Forum. We have a youth forum edition that we involve youth to participate, make proposals, and these proposals don't just stay in slides.

They reach the decision makers and help shape policies.

Also, with a major group of youth and children, it's young people that being credited for the social development, especially we are hosting the Social Summit, the World Social Summit. We have a youth forum for it and it's the— I'm glad to say it's the first youth forum that's happening in Doha.

All of these aren't only hypothetical initiatives.

They are already changing how young people participate in shaping outcomes and implementations. But to go further, we need to embed youth at every stage of policy design, increase funding for youth-led pilot projects, create feedback loops that shows you said, we did, and make sure youth participate in summits like the Social Summit, not just as guests but as contributors.

Finally, before I'd like to conclude that we are not just—

we are not only leading our families, homes, or schools anymore. No, actually we are leading our countries and nations by uniting and joining hands together to find innovative solutions that was set by our predecessors and find the solutions and solve all the world's problems. And thank you very much. Thank you so much, Salem, for sharing your expectations and those exciting initiatives, including the upcoming Youth Forum in Doha. Let's now explore how multilateral processes ensure that all rights holders, including persons with disabilities, are fully included. I now turn to Mr. Kelson. How are rights holders being included in key multilateral processes, including the implementation of the Pact for the Future and UN at 80? What more needs to be done to mainstream these voices?

Thank you so much, Moderator, and I'm so pleased to be representing the International Disability Alliance at this important event today. on building solutions for an inclusive future. I'd like to thank the Chair of the Third Committee, Third Committee Secretariat, and the Major Group for Children and Youth for convening this important meeting. So the International Disability Alliance, or IDA, represents 5,000 organizations of persons with disabilities globally. We're in 182 countries, and we work collectively to advance the human rights of persons with disabilities with a united voice. So IDA has long championed the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities through an intersectional lens, and this of course includes advancing the rights of youth with disabilities and ensuring the future is shaped with and by them. So in this regard, IDA is really pleased to have youth committee made up of 20 youth with disabilities from around the world. We consistently underscore the importance of youth with disabilities championing the rights and meaningful inclusion of young people in the disability space, but also in all multilateral processes and beyond. So in that regard, I want to highlight some of the engagements that our youth committee has really participated in most recently. And some of the excellent work they've carried out. So in the context of the Summit of the Future, for example, the IDA Youth Committee released a call to action really outlining some of the key asks addressed to the international community. That's inclusive policies and participatory development agendas, supporting youth with disabilities to develop leadership skills, promoting platforms of dialogue and engagement, and empowering youth with disabilities through visibility and involving youth with disabilities in decision-making processes and accountability mechanisms. So our Youth Committee really took forward these messages at the Summit of the Future, but also this year at the 2025 Global Disability Summit in Berlin, at HLPF in July. We had our Youth Committee member speak on behalf of the stakeholder group of persons with disabilities, and also at the high-level meeting to commemorate the 30th anniversary of action for youth as part of High-Level Week in September. Now we're really focused on the World Social Summit in Doha in November. Really pleased to be here with the youth delegate from Qatar. We've been really clear in our demands that the World Social Summit needs to chart a way forward that really ensures the full and equal participation of persons with disabilities, upholds their rights, and guarantees the resources and systems necessary for dignity and inclusion. We welcome that throughout the negotiation process of the Doha Political Declaration, Many of the priorities were reflected by the global disability movement, and also there was continued advocacy and leadership of organizations of persons with disabilities, including youth with disabilities. So a big priority for us will be carrying forward these messages in Doha at the summit in November, and we're very pleased to announce that our youth fellow Esther Nagaty from the International Disability Alliance will be attending and speaking at the summit. So to answer your question on what more needs to be done to really mainstream youth with disabilities' voices, I want to refer to some of the key priorities that have been aligned— have been outlined by our Youth Committee. So first, meaningful youth engagement and effective participation. A lot of you have spoken about that today. Second, extending engagement beyond disability-only rooms. Youth with disabilities want to contribute to so many other issues: climate change, peace, employment, justice, peacebuilding, humanitarian action, and crisis response. The importance of financing the engagement of youth, not just events, so really dedicating funds funds for youth participation, travel, online access, paid roles, core funding to organizations of persons with disabilities and youth with disabilities to prepare delegates and really to sustain action between summits. And finally, intergenerational governance, not tokenistic youth slots. So really pairing youth to co-lead with senior officials trading experience, bringing fresh innovative ideas, and rebuilding youth trust and confidence in institutions. So those are some of the key messages that our Youth Committee continues to carry forward in all the UN engagements and will continue to do so as we move towards the Social Summit. I'll leave it there. Thank you so much. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Matthew, for the work you and IDA Committee are doing to strengthen the effectiveness and equity of multilateral decisions. And thank you to all of our panelists for sharing their experiences and ideas. I will now pass the floor back to Naveen to guide us into the next segment of our discussion, which is the interactive dialogue with all of you.

Thank you, Shannon. Without wasting much time. We are already running late, but before we move to the floor, let's also take a moment to think about what does the future of multilateralism look like through a social inclusion lens, and of how can youth and marginalized stakeholders help to shape it despite existing barriers, and how can the Pact for the Future and outcomes of the World Social Summit serve as concrete roadmap to rebuild trust Close the implementation gap and ensure intergenerational equity in the United Nations work globally. Let's have the interventions from the floor, but please, I hope you have pressed the button, and once it turns red, you are good to go. And please, young people, I request you don't panic. We will be with you, supporting you in case the button doesn't turn red and you're speaking. It never goes to waste. Let me invite the distinguished representative from Sierra Leone. The floor is yours.

Distinguished colleagues, esteemed youth delegates, permit me to stand on existing protocols. My name is Isaac Bayoh. I am Sierra Leone's youth representative to the United Nations and also the lead youth peace and security expert to the United Nations Security Council. We must remember that during this committee session, member states have both the responsibility and the opportunity to translate the youth peace and security agenda from rhetoric to results. Nearly a decade after Resolution 2250, implementation remains uneven, with fewer than 30 member states adopting national action plans. Youth-led organizations receiving less than 1% of global peacebuilding funds, and young people, particularly the most marginalized, still largely excluded from formal prevention and mediation spaces. Sierra Leone approaches this moment with deliberate purpose and tangible progress. As we prepare to assume the presidency of the Security Council in November, Sierra Leone will place youth peace and security at the center our presidency, focusing on institutionalizing youth participation, advancing prevention frameworks that convert early warning into early action, and championing sustainable financing for youth-led peacebuilding. Guided by the development of our first National Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security, the establishment of a National Steering Committee and Technical Working Group, and our leadership in advancing a zero-draft YPS resolution, Sierra Leone intends to ensure that the 10th anniversary of Resolution 2250 is not commemorative, but catalytic. This will be a moment where the Security Council reaffirms that youth are not subjects of peace, but we are all co-architects of that. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much. May I request representative of Children and Youth International to take the floor, seat number 66?

Thank you, Chair and distinguished representatives. My name is Yash Dhari Malla, and I represent the Youth Science Policy Interface. As we discuss strengthening multilateralism and finding pathways to progress, we must recognize that digital and emerging technologies play a key role in unlocking an inclusive future. A central gap in current AI governance is its failure to meaningfully center the core mandate of the Third Committee. Protecting vulnerable groups, and eliminating discrimination across intersectional groups. From a social inclusion lens, the future of multilateralism must guarantee algorithmic fairness. The Youth Outcome Document from the SDI Forum this year by the Youth Commission on Science, Engineering, Technology for SDGs highlights that the AI systems, if untrained on diverse and unethically collected data, disproportionately impact groups like displaced migrants and LGBTQI+ individuals, people with disabilities, and older persons. The UN system and member states must systematically invest and integrate evidence and policy recommendations generated by youth-led science networks to ensure solutions are context-specific and scalable. We need intergenerational governance forums and dialogues to ensure technologies like AI advance social development rather than entrench existing digital and social divides. Young people have the expertise, and are bringing the data, the foresight, and innovative solutions needed to build an inclusive future. Thank you.

Thank you, Yash. Allow me to invite the distinguished representative of Portugal from, uh, who's present with us online.

Excellencies, distinguished guests, dear youth representatives, we cannot only meet the needs and aspirations of all young people if we systematically listen to them, work alongside them, and provide meaningful opportunities for them to shape the future. This principle is enshrined in the Pact on the Future, which recognizes, as a matter of priority of the United Nations, that young engagement is essential in addressing the challenges we face globally. One of the key challenges before us today is precisely the future of multilateralism and the vital role of diplomatic relationships. In a world marked by armed conflicts, where children and young people are often the primary victims, it is crucial that we work to strengthen youth participation, safeguard their rights, and amplify the voice of those who are too often unheard, including young people from rural areas, migrant communities, and minority groups. Ladies and gentlemen, I believe this is one of the central challenges we must collectively reflect upon. All of us in this room are privileged to have the opportunity to speak out and be heard, but what about those who belong to marginalized communities, who live far from major decision-making centers? How can we encourage their participation? The strengthening of democracy and multilateralism must necessarily involve a deliberative focus on these more distant and often often overlooked young youth populations, understanding their perspectives and incorporating their views into the formulation of public policies. Only by listening to all voices can we truly grasp the full range of youth concerns, enabling young people to become not merely beneficiaries but also co-creators of the solution that will help build a world better than the one we inherit. Ladies and gentlemen, my name is André, and I'm honored to serve as President of the National Council, and it was a privilege to share this reflection with you today. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much. I now invite the representative from Asia-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development, who's present with us online.

Chairs, Excellencies, and young people, I'm speaking on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Regional CSOs Engagement Mechanism. A collective of over 700 organizations from across 37 countries in the region recognized by UNESCO. The multidimensionality of our crises of cost of living, climate, conflict, debt, governance, and inequalities affecting billions around the world requires critical reforms that can no longer be casualties of consensus or convenience. The credibility of our multilateralism rests on our ability to walk the talk on transformation to avoid falling prey to the fallacies of the neoliberal model that makes war profitable over peace, disease over well-being, disasters over safety, and dollars over dignity. UN80 is our opportunity then to redefine our approach to the foundational principles of the UN— of peace, rights, and security— as non-negotiable global commons respected and protected across the board. Parallelly, we must also be cognizant of the consequences of our actions, or lack of it in some cases, to avoid their intergenerational implications before it is too little too late. The need for a bold, inclusive, and efficient multilateralism is our last frontier. To provide the leadership and will necessary for critical policy action to deliver on the promises of the Pact for the Future, as a turning point for life at large. Excellencies, let us ensure that the fragilities of our times caused by the frailties of a few do not compromise the promise of our collective future. I thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much. I now invite the distinguished representative from Czechia.

Chair, delegates, Young people today are not just affected by social challenges, we live them. We face unaffordable housing, unstable jobs, and education systems preparing us for yesterday's world, not tomorrow's. Entrepreneurship gives us a way to respond, to build solutions with impact that future generations will rely on and that make older generations listen. Sigma Square Society, a global network of young founders, have a motto: What if the world's most influential leaders of today were best friends 20 years ago? That's the kind of intergenerational trust we need to start building now. We often say that the future belongs to the youth, but the truth is the future belongs to those who build it together. And with that, I'm pleased to pass the floor to my colleague, Terezija, the other youth delegate.

Distinguished delegates, last week, Czechia made history. We elected a record number of women and young people to Parliament. It should have been a moment of pride, but a part of the debate started questioning whether they are too incompetent, too emotional, or not ready to lead. What holds women and youth back a lot of the times is the way society still views power. Consciously or not, many still believe that power naturally belongs to older men. But we have clear evidence that when women and youth are in parliament, it becomes less corrupt, more open, and more trusted. To change this bias, we need a cultural shift that starts with each of us. We need to challenge prejudice when we see it, make the leadership of women and youth the norm, and protect from— and protect them from online hate that silences them before they can even begin. We may never feel ready, but we have to step up anyway, because democracy cannot afford to wait until we do. Thank you.

Thank you. I now invite the representative from Action Collective pour le Développement Intégral des Enfants, Edda Le Jaune-Filet. I'm very sorry if that's the wrong pronunciation. You have the floor now. Seat number 38. Yeah.

Excellence, colleagues, and young My name is Divne Gezesgin, and I am a 15-year-old Turkish-American youth. It is a great honor to address you on behalf of ADEFIVEA World and SDG YouthConnect at this dialogue on the role of youth in shaping 21st century multilateralism. The future of multilateralism must not belong only to institutions. It must belong to young people collaborating across borders, disciplines, and generations. In this regard, artificial intelligence and digital innovation stand as powerful catalysts for inclusion and participation. At Addis Abeba World, we promote human-centered digital multilateralism, a system in which every young person, even in the rural areas of La République Démocratique du Congo, such as South Kivu, can access knowledge and and contribute to global data, co-creating local solutions to global challenges. We are training a new generation of AI youth leaders in the DRC, of young innovators capable of using technology to advance peace, equality, and sustainable development. This approach positions youth as not just beneficiaries, but as co-creators of public policies and innovative solutions, led by SDG education and awareness campaigns. However, access to connectivity remains a privilege for far too many. Millions of young Africans and millions of other nationalities around the world are still excluded from this digital revolution. This is why we call upon governments and international partners to treat the digital divide as an urgent matter of social justice and global governance. We, the youth of the world, are ready to use technology to map inequalities track progress, and hold institutions accountable, measuring the multilateralism of tomorrow not by the number of agreements signed, but by the number of young people connected, empowered, and engaged. We will not wait for change, but we will build it together.

Thank you. Thank you very much. That was indeed powerful. Thank you. I now invite distinguished representatives from Antigua and Barbuda.

Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Chair. It is my greatest pleasure to contribute on behalf of the young people of Antigua and Barbuda. It is essential to ground this conversation in real examples of how young people are stepping forward with both courage and competence.

In Antigua and Barbuda, we have seen an incredible increase in the number of young people pursuing higher education, directly transforming our generation into the true partners of progress.

With the right investment, people from small and developing states will strengthen trust in multilateral processes by bringing fresh perspectives, lived experiences, and academic preparation into the heart of negotiations. But our education and skills cannot stand alone. To unlock our full value, we cannot continue to accept tokenism. This is all collective call for support, mentorship, and respect from the international community. And Chair, this call goes hand in hand with the reality of small islands, because no matter how tall and talented, educated or innovative our young people are, our future is tied to the survival and resilience of the states we represent.

For small islands like mine, cooperation, compromise, and coordination are not a choice.

We carry the weight of global circumstances we did not create. A fluctuation in taxes or a disruption in imports strips food from our tables and punishes the most vulnerable in our society. When the MVI is ignored, our students and NGOs are labeled as high income and denied scholarships, grants, and programs that could truly empower our youth.

When climate policy stalls, is our community underwater?

It is our children collapsing in classrooms from heat stress. It is our people who will suffer from mental health issues. Chair, we are ready, we're innovative, and we are determined. What we ask for is very simple: to be empowered, to be mentored, and to be respected. Thank you. Thank you very much. I, I now invite the representative from Gelides Instituto da Mulher Negra. who are present with us online. Thank you.

Thank you, Chair, and distinguished youth delegates. For youth of African descent, the issues under the Third Committee's purview are not abstract. They define daily realities, from barriers to education and employment to racial profiling, digital discrimination, and unequal access to justice and healthcare. Systemic racism continues to shape the social development outcomes this committee seeks to advance. What has changed in recent years is the visibility of these inequalities amplified by the pandemic, the digital divide, and the climate crisis, all of which have exposed how racial and economic injustice intersect. Young people of African descent are no longer asking to be included. But leading solutions in our communities. Yet too often, their innovations remain disconnected from global decision-making spaces such as this one. The gap between New York and the realities on the ground lies in representation and accountability. Resolutions here often reaffirm commitments, but they rarely translate into resources or follow-up mechanisms that reach marginalized youth. The Third Committee can bridge this gap by institutionalizing youth participation, particularly from racialized communities, in the drafting, monitoring, and evaluation of its outcomes. During this session, Member States have the opportunity to advance concrete actions, support the mechanisms such as the People of African Descent Stakeholder Group and the Pact for the Future implementation, strengthen data disaggregation by race, age, gender, disability, territory, and other intersectionalities, and integrate anti-racism across all youth-related resolutions. Because countering racism is not a separate agenda, it is the foundation of social development and human dignity. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I now invite the distinguished representative from Bulgaria, you have the floor now. Yeah, thank you.

Thank you, Chair. Distinguished delegates, fellow youth, my name is Emily and I am a youth delegate from Bulgaria. In the past months, in youth consultations we held across our country, young people repeatedly expressed the same sentiment: education is where we feel most spoken about but least spoken with. We need to involve students and youth organizations directly in shaping curricula, digital transformation, and reform priorities. Not after the decisions are made, but while they're being written. One simple step could be the creation of formal youth consultative bodies on education, where young people sit with ministries and educators to co-design policies follow up on their impact. Because when we help write the rules, we start to trust the system again, and that's what intergenerational policymaking really means. And in the end, this is what young people in Bulgaria are asking for: to implement the kind of education that makes us stay, not search for futures somewhere else. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I now invite the representative from International Federation of Medical Students Association, who's with us online. Thank you, Chair.

Representing 1.5 million medical students, IFMSA envisions a future of multilateralism that is inclusive, accountable, and centered on health and well-being of children, adolescents, youth, and marginalized communities. True social inclusion requires co-creation, where young people, civil society, UN agencies, and member states collaborate to address health equity and social determinants of health. Including education, economic opportunities, housing, and safe environments. IFMSA actively facilitates youth engagement across global health governance platforms, including the delegations to WHA, UNGA high-level meetings, and other multilateral spaces. We participate in various working groups and policy advisory bodies, ensuring youth are not only present but actively shaping health governance. At the same time, IFMSA builds capacities of youth at national and local levels, enabling them to translate global commitments into local actions. Youth are already making meaningful contributions, and when capacitated and provided structured spaces, they can achieve even greater impact. Thus, we call on all the stakeholders to establish interagency working groups with youth to tackle pressing health priorities— UHC, mental health, sexual and reproductive health, and NCDs— ensuring diverse representation and college reviews. Institutionalize permanent and sustainable youth platforms and actively engage in policymaking, monitoring, and implementation at all levels, including through meaningful involvement in youth-delegated programs. Furthermore, embed youth-led accountability and co-leadership frameworks, including within the Pact for Future, with measurable outcomes and transparent reporting. Support youth-driven innovation and knowledge exchange through mentorship, peer learning networks, and innovation grants. Furthermore, invest in self-care and health services adapted to adolescents and youth, ensuring access to resources that promote well-being and resilience. Last but not least, integrate youth voices systematically and meaningfully into high-level policy processes, including the World Social Summit and SDGs follow-ups. The future of multilateralism depends on all stakeholders working together with purpose and accountability. By giving youth real spaces and capacities to act, we can ensure every young person has the care, support, and opportunity to thrive. The question is, if youth are already contributing so much, how much more could we achieve if we were fully trusted, capacitated, and partnered with them? Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Uh, let's have a huge round of applause. We do have time to actually clap for everybody who spoke. And these are youth voices. Let's, let's clap. Let's have a huge round of applause and let them— let's motivate them. But unfortunately, we could not hear from all the speakers requesting the floor due to the high interest in the discussion. And as I move towards the closing part, but thanks to all our distinguished speakers, delegates, and youth representatives. Today's discussion has shown that renewing multilateralism is not just about rebuilding institutions, it's about rebuilding trust. It's about ensuring that those who have been excluded for too long, be it the communities discriminated on walk and descent, indigenous people, persons with disability, migrants and refugees, youth, and of course all the frontline youth, are recognized as equal partners in shaping our collective future. As we move towards the Second World Social Summit on Social Development in November, Our challenge is clear: to transform dialogue into delivery and inclusion into lasting impact. Finally, a big thanks to Your Excellency, the Chair of the United Nations General Assembly Third Committee, for making sure that the youth from communities discriminated on work and descent and other marginalized youth voices are not just in the room but on the same panel sharing the space as equal contributors to the dialogue. As we celebrate this inclusion, I would must also ask, where do we, the CDWD, Indigenous, refugee, and other historically marginalized youth, stand as the Third Committee deliberation continues? Thank you for listening to us, and the world also has to hear us now. With that, I hand it back to His Excellency the Chair. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you so much, Naveen and Shannon, for the exceptional work Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President, as our co-moderators, and of course our 3 panelists, Salem, Sarah, and Matthew, for your insightful and very impactful contributions, and all of you for your contributions to this very rich conversation we had this afternoon. I will now briefly pause the meeting In order for the podium to be rearranged for the closing of the event, please remain seated. Do not leave yet. We have a few minutes to close this meeting. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much.

Please, please get back to your seats. Allow me to begin the Allow me to begin the closing segment of the event. I now invite Mr. John Kerstov of the Major Group of Children and Youth to deliver a statement. Please, the floor is yours.

Good evening, my name is John Kerstov and I hail from Canada, speaking on behalf of the Global Youth Caucus on SDG 16. It is an honor to have the final word at this historic first-ever youth event convened under the auspices of the Third Committee. On behalf of the Major Group for Children and Youth, I want to extend our deepest gratitude to the Chair, the Secretariat, and all partners for creating this vital platform. We thank all Member States for their support, including Portugal, who provided financial support for the online platform. I also thank the Secretariat of MGCY, including the admin team, which worked very hard to make this a reality. Today, we heard a unified message amidst overlapping global crises young people are not waiting. We are active agents of change demanding to be met where we are. These sessions established that meaningful youth engagement is not a favor but a necessity for creating sharper, more equitable policies. We explored urgent social challenges, hearing powerful calls for practical peace education, structured inclusion for marginalized youth, and concrete solutions for the mental health, housing, and employment crises we all face. We moved from why we must be included to how, showcasing models for youth co-leadership through institutionalized partner participation and dedicated sustainable funding. The demand is clear: we must be co-architects of policy on everything from peace to AI governance and systemic inequality. The Major Group for Children and Youth, together with our constituencies, is now consolidating these discussions into a formal youth outcome document, which will be made available later this month. Emerging from today is a clear call to move from the performative consultation that we heard so much about to bridge the gap between UN policy and our lived realities. So let's— our call to action be this: let us not allow this to be a one-off occurrence. We urge the Third Committee to make this at least an annual event, a recurring space for intergenerational dialogue with meaningful collaboration in between. Let's leave this room committed to turning words into action, and we will all see some of you at the ECOSOC Youth Forum soon. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mr. Kessler, for your kind statement. I have heard many useful views, inspiring ideas, thoughtful solutions from our youth during the 2 segments during the course of this afternoon and it gives me much hope that while the world is facing setbacks on a lot of fronts, our future generation remains resolute in multilateralism and making progress for the world and humankind. Now, of course, it is up to all of us to take this further. To turn our deliberation into actions, as many of you have said during the course of this afternoon. I hope that this builds a good step on our important journey to empower the voice of our youths. Once again, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to the Secretary-Director of UNFPA, Assistant Secretary on Youth Affairs, and Assistant Secretary-General and Special Representative I would like to thank the leadership of ILO, to the UN, and our youth colleagues for attending this event in person and online. To this end, allow me to pass the microphone to the youth delegates from my home country, Thailand, to deliver their closing remarks. The microphone is yours.

Mr. Chair, distinguished delegates, Dear colleagues and friends, as today's conversations draw to a close, we, Thai youth delegates, stand humbled by the richness of this dialogue, and we would like to leave some inspiring yet bold messages in this hall of the United Nations. What began this afternoon as an initiative of the Third Committee has now become living proof that youths are not only present, but we are ready and willing to co-author the future. We have listened to diverse voices from young people on the ground, representatives of the states, and civil society, and this echoes one simple truth: that children and youths are not passive beneficiaries of decisions but essential actors in shaping them. The panels reminded us that meaningful engagement is the foundation for restoring trust in multilateralism. And also, it reminded us of the urgency of this moment: the 80th anniversary of the United Nations, the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth, and the path to the Second World Summit on Social Development. For us, these milestones are not just symbols. They are calls to action, calls that youth might help to answer them. Thank you.

Excellencies, the reflections and activities of today's session really show us the real power of dialogue, intergenerational exchange that bridges lived experiences and future aspirations. As Thai youth coming from one of the world's fastest aging societies, we believe that the future is not about a competition between generations but a collaboration among them. So let's carry forward the progress we have made here today. Let us transform dialogue into partnership and commitments into concrete action, because in shaping the agenda of this committee, the message is clear: youth are not just beneficiaries. We are your partners, and together we are co-authors of an inclusive future. I thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you very much. Before concluding, there are 2 things. First of all, I'd like to thank you so much once again, our moderators, invited speakers, as well as delegations for your contribution. Secondly, good news, I would like to invite all participants to approach the podium after the We are now meeting for a group photo. The meeting is adjourned. Thank you very much.

Thank you.