This year the Pacific Region Commonwealth Youth Ministers Meeting & Youth Leaders Forum will be held in Apia, Samoa from September 1-3. The conference is convened by the Commonwealth Secretariat with the theme for the 2015 edition being Youth as Partners in Sustainable Small Island Development.
The meet will involve discussions on youth development issues in the Pacific, as well as around the world, and the roles young people can play in achieving development goals.
Speaking before the meet, Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General (Economic and Social Development), Deodat Maharaj, said that we must rely on the capacity, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of young people to overcome challenges caused by economic shock and natural disasters.
“As we seek to empower the next generation of policy-makers and business leaders across the Pacific to enhance resilience, we must also recognise that this generation faces its own set of challenges, such as limited access to employment opportunities, lack of voice, and issues related to health and wellbeing.
“This meeting gives Commonwealth governments a platform to demonstrate their commitment to young people and collaborate on their priority concerns and ambitions. Our agenda is ambitious, but our resolve is strong and we are hopeful for a powerful plan of action to be agreed by the participating governments,” Maharaj said.
Those that will be in attendance are ministers, senior government officials, youth representatives and youth development stakeholders from across the Commonwealth Pacific; including Australia, Fiji, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tokelau, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Day one of the assemblage will see Pacific youth leaders take part in the Youth Leaders’ Forum, that will be managed by the Commonwealth Youth Council and supported by the Samoa National Youth Council.
The Youth Ministers Meeting will then follow on the second and third days.
