Learn more about the situation of young people around the world.

In particular, young people should acquire the education and skills needed to contribute in a productive economy and they need access to a job market that can absorb them into the labour force. Youth can be a positive force for development when provided with the knowledge and opportunities they need to thrive. By 2030-the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda-the number of youth is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion.Īs youth are increasingly demanding more just, equitable and progressive opportunities and solutions in their societies, the need to address the multifaceted challenges faced by young people (such as access to education, health, employment and gender equality) have become more pressing than ever. Today, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 per cent of the global population. Nonetheless, the operational definition and nuances of the term ‘youth’ vary from country to country, depending on relative sociocultural, institutional, economic and political factors. Many countries also draw the line on youth with regard to the age at which a person is given equal treatment under the law-often referred to as the ‘age of majority.’ This age is commonly 18 in many countries so that once a person attains this age, he or she is considered to be an adult. At the time, it was hoped that the Convention would provide protection and rights to as large an age-group as possible, especially as there was no similar document on the rights of youth. Worthy of note, however, is that Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child defines ‘children’ as persons up to the age of 18. This statistically oriented definition of youth, in turn, entails that children are considered those persons under the age of 14. All UN statistics on youth are based on this definition, as is reflected in the annual yearbooks of statistics published by the UN system on demography, education, employment and health. This definition, which arose in the context of preparations for the International Youth Year (1985) (see A/36/215), was endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolution 36/28 of 1981. For statistical purposes, however, the United Nations-without prejudice to any other definitions made by Member States-defines ‘youth’ as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years.

There is no universally agreed international definition of the youth age group.

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