Society For All: Equity and Inclusion for a Sustainable Future
The twentieth session of the Youth Assembly at the United Nations in New York came to a remarkable end on Saturday 12th August. The Youth Assembly (YA) is a unique platform for fostering dialogue and generating partnerships between exceptional youth, civil society, the private sector, and the United Nations. It began as an annual forum in 2002, which expanded into a biannual conference held at the United Nations Headquarters.
This year’s edition of the Youth Assembly at the United Nations that ran from 9th to 12th August presented both an enormous opportunity and a challenge to stimulate and ensure youth engagement and participation in achieving an inclusive and sustainable future where no one is left behind.
Inspired by the overarching principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, “leaving no one behind,” the conference explored cross-cutting issues and solutions for sustainable development in the social, economic, and environmental dimensions, and brought together 1,500 youths from over 100 countries.
It was truly humbling to have the opportunity to represent Uganda in this year's summer edition of the Youth Assembly as a delegate, a great deal of thanks to all the generous souls who made this possible. I particularly would like to thank all those who contributed and supported me in my fundraising drive. Your contributions will continue to impact, not only my life, but also that of many other people. Thank you.
I sincerely believe that the creation of a society for all demands for the full participation of all people and the youthful energy of the young regardless of where in the world they may come from. The realization of this is the beginning of the birth of an inclusive society where no one is left behind.
Uganda is demographically one of the youngest nations in the world with an average age of 16 years according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). This has two potential significances. First, Uganda’s youthful population could be a tremendous asset in the near future and will surely be at the forefront of national development, both in the socio-economic and cultural spheres, if and only if the rightful investments in their unlimited potentials are made.
I firmly believe that these investments include but are not limited to quality education that fully equips the youth to be independent, creative, and critical thinkers ready to innovatively address the complex challenges of their time such as poverty, unemployment, hunger, climate change, and inequalities; provision of proper mentorship to equip the youth with the experiential wisdoms of the elders around them; creation of more access to youth elevating opportunities like personal skills development workshops; and most importantly, fully believing in the potential of the youth and offering the necessary guidance as they steer our country forward towards a Ugandan society for all Ugandans. This is the path we must choose as a country.
The second possible outcome of Uganda’s unique demographic outcome, in my opinion, is one that could possibly emerge because of the failure to make the above necessary investments in the young people. An under-prepared, less equipped, under-educated, unskilled youthful population is a dreadful recipe for a doomed future. That is not the future we want and it’s not the future we should work for.
The twentieth session of the Youth Assembly at the United Nations was deeply inspiring, immensely educational, and extremely equipping. With the new friendships made, great ideas acquired, and a reignited sense of responsibility and definiteness of purpose, I pledge to walk the walk and take drastic actions towards the sustainable development goals and to inspire and equip fellow Ugandan youths and those everywhere to do so as we, together, build a society for all.
The seventeen Sustainable Development Goals and the 169 targets which were announced in a resolution adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 25 September 2015 demonstrate the scale and ambition of the new universal Agenda. They seek to build on the Millennium Development Goals and complete what they did not achieve. They seek to realize the human rights of all and to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: the economic, social and environmental.
