On World Youth Skills Day, we are pleased to publish recommendations from diaspora youth on how to integrate youth perspectives in migration policy processes and beyond.
Young people are universally recognised as incredible agents of change and some of the most active, effective and dynamic advocates for sustainable development. This recognition is underlined by this year’s World Youth Skills Day which celebrates “Youth Skills for Peace and Development”. Diaspora youth have a special place within peace and development thanks to their comprehensive soft and hard skills, and transnational connections; they drive discourse and action for peace and development in the countries they live and have heritage in. Including young people across EUDiF’s work brings great added value and creates impact.
Back in March, we invited 10 diaspora youth representatives to an interactive focus-session on “youth” as both a topic and as a stakeholder in the project. Following the workshop, the participants developed a series of recommendations, some of which are helping us to design activities for EUDiF’s newly started second phase, including the youth programme and grants for diaspora organisations to run development projects.
The set of recommendations published today reaches beyond the project, addressing how to better integrate youth perspectives in migration policy and programming – they can even be applied far beyond migration policy.
The recommendations were co-drafted by Oumou Diallo, Adelaide Hirwe, Marianna Hu and Gilberto Morishaw, with inputs gathered during the workshop from Oumnia Bouaddi, Hajar Erraji, Jennifer Kwao, Oksana Muzychuk, Savannah Schuurbiers and Maria Regina Tongson.
What to expect
The comprehensive recommendations are grouped into three sections:
- Recognition of youth expertise
- Access to flexible funding
- Youth inclusion in governance structures
Within these sections, the authors explain their rationale and provide concrete recommendations ranging from crediting and remunerating young researchers, to flexible funding models and participatory funding, to transparent recruitment, inclusion in high-level dialogues and generational-impact assessments.
How to use the recommendations?
As the document itself says, recommendations require (re)action! If you are reading this as an organisation that already works with young people, use the recommendations to review your approach and explore what you could do better. Is youth-inclusion something you do on an ad-hoc basis, or perhaps not at all? Consider developing a strategy and indicators so that youth inclusion becomes an integrated part of your work. If you have young colleagues, amplify their voices within your organisation, and support and celebrate them for the other “hats” they often wear, such as in volunteer work.
On our side, EUDiF will continue to include youth perspectives in project implementation, both through continuing to offer early-career experience to diaspora youth and by strengthening ties with the alumni community and wider youth network. The recommendations in this document, along with those made directly on EUDiF’s activities, are already informing the design of activities in our new phase and we will continue to promote these recommendations internally and externally.
Thank you to the focus session participants for sharing their time, ideas and expertise which have led to the conceptual and practical guidance in these recommendations.