SPIC Thematic Priority 1: Youth

The needs and aspirations of youth are central concerns to UNESCO and youth issues are mainstreamed into all programme areas of the Organization.

UNESCO has a long-standing commitment to young people who have been recognized as a priority group since the 1990s; a recognition reflected in the Organization’s medium-term strategies formulated since 1995. The current 37 C/4 medium term strategy 2014-2021 notes that the needs and aspirations of youth are central concerns to UNESCO and youth issues are mainstreamed into all programme areas of the Organization . UNESCO Operational strategy on youth 2014-2021 embodies the Organization’s work and interventions dealing with youth in all the programme areas . it notes that UNESCO recognizes youth as agents of change, social transformations, peace and sustainable development . in the light of that perspective, the Organization will take action to ensure that young men and women are engaged in policies and programmes, which affect them and lead actions to promote peace and sustainable development in their countries and communities . UNESCO’s operational actions on youth are based on three axes, namely, policy formulation and review with participation of youth, capacity development for the transition to adulthood, and civic engagement, democratic participation and social innovation.

The thematic priority on youth also reflects the importance that the Strategic Plan for the Caribbean community 2015-2019 accords to the essential role of young people in achieving sustainable development processes in Caribbean states . That strategic plan stresses the need for (i) youth development initiatives to address youth entrepreneurship, employment, multilingualism, healthy lifestyles, leadership skills, citizenship, regional identity, and preparation for participation in governance and (iii) leadership of youth to ensure the relevance and sustainability of initiatives for building resilience . the areas of focus where actions will be implemented under this priority deal with supporting skills training and youth empowerment; and strengthening youth capacities and engagement in protecting and safeguarding cultural and natural heritage . these actions represent UNESCO’s contribution to priority area 2 of the UN MSDF in the Caribbean 2017-2021 on safe, cohesive and just Caribbean and its outcome of increased access to quality education.

Area of Focus 1: Youth empowerment through skills for opportunities

This area of focus relates to UNESCO’s role as the lead agency for achieving targets of SDG 4 on inclusive and equitable quality education and its contribution to UN MSDF priority area 1 on inclusive, equitable and prosperous Caribbean. Skills are critical assets for individuals, businesses and societies. Skills training for young people is particularly important in a dynamic, globalized world and it is crucial to ensure that skills acquired in schools are relevant for the working world. Enhancing technical and vocational education and training in Caribbean countries to provide quality education and training, which match labour market demands should serve as an essential guiding principle in skills development. Worldwide, governments and development partners are renewing efforts to promote technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in the context of economic growth, technological change, and the transformation of the nature of work . at the regional level, the revised CARICOM strategy for technical and vocational education and training (2014) seeks to improve the quality and relevance of TVET in Caribbean countries. Reaching that objective requires capacity building and provision of policy advice to the educational and training institutions as well as TVET councils.
Young people tend to be the segment of the population who practice and consume creative products the most. However, there are limited conduits to develop the skills, which fuse creative inputs with new technologies in traditional education institutions in the Caribbean . the report of the inter-sessional meeting of Heads of State and Government of CARICOM in February 2015: leveraging CARICOM’s Human, cultural and Natural assets for the economic Development of the community, calls for strengthening educational programmes in the arts and support services at all levels in member states, including vocational and short-term courses and piloting a Performing arts High school in each country . in this context, UNESCO will:

• Provide technical assistance and advisory service to Caribbean states to strengthen skills training and job readiness programmes for young people
• Assist in strengthening the capacities of instructors to use competency-based methods in assessing candidates for certification
• Encourage the design of TVET teacher training programmes to enhance teachers’ workplace learning opportunities and increase their knowledge of the labour market
• Assist in strengthening the capacity of training institutions and TVET councils to develop and revise TVET policies, conduct research on skills anticipation and trends in the labour market as well as monitor and evaluate training programmes in relation to the needs of the labour market
• Assist in developing most schools, through partnership and branding mechanisms, focused on building the capacity of young researchers and young decision makers in transforming research-based knowledge into action and in evidence informed decision making
• Enhance media and information literacy (MIL) in Caribbean states to empower the youth to understand and become meaningful users and producers of information and media to contribute to democracy and sustainable development
• Assist in strengthening programmes in educational institutions, other training and learning platforms dealing with arts, culture, and heritage which foster young people’s creative potential
• Assist in strengthening youth capacities and engagement in protecting and managing cultural and natural heritage through the World Heritage Education Programme
• Assist in strengthening capacities in Caribbean states to preserve, safeguard and transmit their intangible cultural heritage and traditional knowledge to the youth

Area of focus 2: Youth driven policy design

The social dimensions of the 2030 agenda for sustainable Development and the targets on social inclusion, eradication of extreme poverty, reduction of inequalities, inclusive policies for cities, as well as inclusive and participatory decision-making processes resonate with the mandate of the management of social transformations (MOST) programme to support member states in managing contemporary social transformations . the main objective is to enhance, by the end of 2021, capacities in member states to generate evidence through high quality research to support the formulation and choice of policies, which are based on participatory policymaking processes and are relevant for attaining the SDGs in UNESCO’s fields of competence. Building on its experience and expertise, the MOST programme will scale up and expand its operational actions to strengthen public policy-making in member states through scientific evidence and knowledge, ethics, and human rights frameworks. In this context, UNESCO will:

• Assess TVET reforms already undertaken in the Caribbean and prepare a flagship report on those reforms
• Assist in improving the quality and relevance of work-based learning (internship/apprenticeship) programmes
• Encourage changes in TVET programmes to enhance science, technology, engineering and mathematics (stem) curricula, entrepreneurship, education for sustainable development, and green skills
• Support the formulation of science, technology and innovation Policies (STIP), ICTs in education policies and master plans, the ICT Competency Framework for teachers as well as strategies to adopt Open educational resources (OER) and Open Access (OA) modalities in the Caribbean
• Promote the integration of emerging technologies, particularly mobile technologies and online learning innovations, to widen access to lifelong learning opportunities, enhance teaching and learning as well as education management
• Facilitate and promote policy dialogues on the importance of culture for sustainable development with special emphasis on participation of youth and youth-related civil society groups

Areas of focus 3: Youth engagement in Knowledge sharing and social innovation

With regard to youth empowerment, sustainable development depends to an important extent on how well Caribbean states take account of the needs, aspirations and involvement in the development process of young people. In addition, the rapid growth, expansion and affordability of digital technologies, especially of smart mobile phones, combined with the energy and intuitive skills of young people, provide a platform to engage Caribbean youth, particularly those at risk (not in school or training, unemployed, underemployed, and those in state care) in productive sustainable development activities. In this context, UNESCO will:

• Promote the use of the Future Knowledge Laboratory (FKL) to assist young people to make sense of a complex world, make informed decisions about the present, and understand the assumptions they use to imagine the future
• Support efforts to increase the number of trained personnel who provide career development advice to young people to minimize dropout, youth unemployment, and indecision about career choices
• Support youth-led initiatives to address societal challenges in sustainable development
• Promote sports and physical education as a means of preventing violence among Caribbean youth
• Promote the youth mobile initiative which aims to empower young people with the high-level skills and confidence to create mobile apps that are locally-relevant and contribute to the reduction of chronic youth unemployment and sustainable development
• Promote youth-oriented community radio and multi-media learning centres
• Support initiatives which enhance the growth of the cultural and creative industries and provide opportunities for young people in Caribbean states
• Support programmes that engage youth in stewardship of the cultural and natural heritage in the Caribbean