The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) convened its annual Youth Forum – a gathering the UN Secretary-General has described as the “primary space at the United Nations for checking the pulse of the world’s young people.” Taking place under the theme, ‘COVID-19 Recovery: Youth Taking Action for a Sustainable Future,’ this year’s Forum presented “bold solutions and initiatives for steering recovery from the pandemic and setting the world back on track” to reach the SDGs by 2030.

The ECOSOC Youth Forum convened virtually from 19-20 April 2022, bringing together youth leaders and delegates from around the world, government representatives, policymakers, and other relevant stakeholders from civil society and the private sector. It was co-organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth (OSGEY), in collaboration with the Major Group for Children and Youth (MGCY), the International Coordination Meeting of Youth Organizations (ICMYO), and UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development (IANYD).

Forum participants addressed the 2022 annual theme of ECOSOC and the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), ‘Building back better from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) while advancing the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.’ The Forum also discussed progress on the Goals under review this year – SDG 4 (quality education), SDG 5 (gender equality), SDG 14 (life below water), SDG 15 (life on land), and SDG 17 (partnerships for the Goals).

According to UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, Jayathma Wickramanayake, the meeting provided “exciting new ways for young people, as well as youth-led and youth-focused organizations and networks, to showcase and amplify their advocacy and commitment to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs while responding to the multiple global crises facing our rapidly changing world.”

UN General Assembly (UNGA) President Abdulla Shahid said youth are “our best hope” for tackling today’s challenges, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, inequality, COVID-19, and conflict, and for achieving success on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged youth to “keep pushing; to keep mobilizing; and to keep bringing your ideas to the table.”

Policy recommendations and key outcomes, captured in a Presidential Statement and an informal summary of the proceedings, will be made available to decision makers at the ECOSOC High-level Segment, the HLPF, the UN Transforming Education Summit, the UN Ocean Conference, and other intergovernmental fora. [ECOSOC Youth Forum 2022] [Concept Note] [Programme] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on ECOSOC Youth Forum 2021]