More than 40 Youth Task Force members across ITU are actively engaging young people in the work of ITU and are nurturing a community of young leaders – all part of a Youth Strategy that drives forward on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- The Generation Connect programme lays the groundwork for the World Telecommunication Development Conference and the Generation Connect Global Youth Summit – both events taking place in 2022. More than 90 Generation Connect events have taken place reflecting views from all regions in the world and more than 50 young people have spoken at ITU events. Young leaders and high-level appointees make up the Visionaries Board which proposes guidance to ITU on its youth-related work.
- The Partner2Connect Coalition fosters connectivity and digital transformation in hardest-to-connect communities. Young people participate in working groups that look at key themes – connecting people everywhere, empowering communities, building digital ecosystems, and incentivizing investments.
- ITU is co-chair of the United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development (IANYD) which strengthens young people’s collaboration and exchange across UN entities. ITU has co-chaired three IANYD meetings, establishing a working group on Meaningful Youth Engagement.
- ITU works with the UN Youth Envoy, collaborating on the #YouthLead Innovation Festival and on efforts to improve children’s online safety.
- Further initiatives that empower young people through ICTs are the Digital Skills for Jobs Campaign and the ITU Digital Skills Toolkit.