Youth and Cities
Young people living in fast-growing cities will play a crucial role in shaping the future of these urban areas. While urbanization presents both opportunities and challenges, the contribution of young people is highly valued. The rapid urbanization of developing countries is expected to have a significant impact on the social, economic, and environmental profiles of these areas.
Our world
is urban
55% of the global population currently residing in urban areas and there is an anticipated increase to 68% by 2050.
Our world
is youthful
There are more people under the age of 25 to-day than ever, totaling nearly three billion or almost half of the total global population; 1.2 billion of that total are between the age of 12 and 24.
Many youth live
in the developing word
Cities in the Global South account for over 90% of the world’s urban growth and youth account for a large portion of this increase. It is estimated that as many as 60% of all urban dwellers will be under the age of 18 by 2030.
Partnering with Youth and Cities
UN-Habitat is an international agency focused on advancing urban youth policy, research, and programming. Historically, youth have been excluded from decision-making, especially in regions with large youth populations like Africa. However, there is increasing recognition of the challenges young people face, including declining socio-economic conditions and limited job opportunities. Many young people experience poverty and are marginalized from their countries’ economic, political, and social spheres, often leading to disillusionment and social unrest.
Through initiatives like Youth 2030 Cities and the localization of the SDGs, UN-Habitat aims to ensure that young people are actively involved in shaping their urban environments. These initiatives support the implementation of the Pact for the Future and the Declaration on Future Generations, underscoring the critical role of youth in building sustainable and inclusive cities.
Youth are in the most productive phase of their lives and have the potential to leverage the “urban advantage” — access to services, amenities, and opportunities in cities, such as healthcare, education, and recreation. Urbanization is key to prosperity, with cities generating about 70% of global GDP and up to 55% of GDP in low-income countries. As 80% of future economic growth is expected to take place in urban areas, today’s educated youth are well-positioned to drive this growth and contribute to more sustainable, equitable cities.
To read more about your hand cities please check out our research and read about how youth contribute to prosperous and inclusive cities.
Kampala Principles of Youth-Led Development
In 2007 representatives from the UN-Habitat´s One Stop Youth Resource Centres originating from four capital cities in East Africa gathered together in Kampala, Uganda. They came together with the goal of determining what were the core working principles of the One Stops which would assure that youth had the best experience possible, in a way which was sustainable over the long term and which recognized youth as leaders today.
Fast-forward 13 years later, and the One Stops have become a model of youth development. The principles that those representatives agreed to – now called the Kampala Principles on Youth-led Development – are now in use not only by the One Stops but by youth programmes globally. They have become the basis for ongoing research undertaken by UN-Habitat through the Global Youth-led Development research series which explores youth-led agencies, how they function, their impact and how they can be best supported. And lastly, the principles and the concept of youth-led development has begun to influence policy at the local, national and global level.
The 5 Kampala principles of youth-led development are:
- Youth define their own development goals and objectives;
- Youth have a safe and generative physical space;
- Adult and peer-to-peer mentorship;
- Youth act as role models for other youth;
- Youth are integrated into local and national development programmes and policies.
One Stop Youth Resource Centres
Though youth are vital to the prosperity of cities in the developing world, they still face many barriers — most notably underemployment and unemployment, and a lack of access to basic services such as healthcare and education — which prevent them from reaching their potential. UN-Habitat has worked with cities globally to overcome these barriers through the development of programmes that achieve three key objectives:
- Improve youths’ livelihoods by increasing their employability
- Decrease their vulnerabilities
- Integrate them fully into the economic and social life of the city
These programmes assist youth to become leaders in their communities and to lead healthy and productive lives.
Over the past two decades UN-Habitat has established, together with its partners, One Stop Youth Resource Centres (One Stops) in cities across Africa, Asia and Latin America. Each One Stop is unique in the programmes it delivers, responding to the needs of the local youth population. Its core programmes are sports and recreation, job skills and entrepreneurship training, health services such as HIV/AIDS testing and counseling, and support for youth-led governance and planning. The One Stops are built on partnerships between UN-Habitat and the local government, civil society, youth, and the private sector to develop programmes which respond to the needs of the youth.
For more information please see our publications on the One Stops.
If you want to learn more on how to be accredited as a One Stop centre please click here.