UN-HABITAT on Thursday unveiled two new initiatives to help young people in the poorer neighbourhoods of cities in the developing world get a better start in life and give the Millennium Development Goals for global poverty reduction a major boost. The new initiatives are an Opportunities Fund for urban youth-led development designed to improve understanding, and lead to more effective ways of involving young people in sustainable urban development. The agency also announced a Global Partnership Initiative on urban youth development in Africa aimed at harnessing the abundant resources of Africa’s youth to improve the quality of life in cities and towns. The initiative also seeks to empower vulnerable urban youth groups for improved socio-economic inclusion and development. The thinking behind the two projects, agency officials said, is forged in the belief that young people are the best agents of change within their communities. |
