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Commission for Social Development
concludes with consensus adoption of resolutions on youth, older
persons
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| Youth unemployment
was an emerging issue discussed at the latest Commission.
Here some young men at a school in Bangladesh learning how
to repair engines (Copyright ILO) |
The Commission for Social Development wrapped up its forty-fifth
session on 16 February in New York, adopting, by consensus, key
resolutions urging greater attention to the needs of youth and elderly
persons as countries pursued national social policy and wider development
goals.
Recognizing that young people formed an active part of the society
and were an important actor for social development, the Commission
-- by the terms of its resolution on youth -- encouraged Member
States to involve young people and their organizations in all aspects
of youth development.
By the terms of a related text, the 46-member Commission supplemented
the World Programme of Action for Youth, addressing among others
the effects of globalization on youth; youth employment and skills
development; empowerment of young people as key contributors to
an inclusive information society; and HIV/AIDS prevention, care
and treatment for youth.
Faced with a global youth unemployment of 13.7 per cent, representing
almost half of the world’s unemployed, the Commission called
on Governments to improve access of youth to technical, secondary
and higher education, to adapt curricula to meet the needs of a
rapidly changing labour market and equip young people with the skills
demanded in today’s economy, including familiarity with ICT.
Among others, the Commission also adopted a resolution on older
persons, calling on Governments to implement the 2002 Madrid International
Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA); the first international agreement
that specifically recognizes the potential of older people to contribute
to the development of their societies. The Commission addressed
the modalities of national and regional review and appraisal of
MIPAA and welcomed Governments’ offers to host regional review
meetings this year. It also invited stakeholders to organize panel
discussions, seminars and round tables during its 2008 session,
to explore the findings of the review and promote future priorities,
while also asking the Secretary-General to prepare an analysis of
preliminary conclusions, identifying prevalent and emerging issues
and policy options.
As the number of unemployed worldwide reached an historical high
of 195.2 million in 2006, the issue of employment was also addressed
during the session which opened on 7 February, along with other
issues such as disability and African development.
For more information, visit www.un.org/esa/socdev/
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