Youth summit on crime and violence planned for World Peace Day 2021

A virtual youth summit on crime and violence is scheduled for World Peace Day, September 21 to 22, with a spotlight on youth-led crime prevention efforts targeting citizen safety and security.

The youth summit was announced last week on International Youth Day by youth leaders and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) multi-country office in Jamaica. Registration is now open to youth, youth groups, development professionals and all other interested persons, at www.readysetgreatja.com.

The event is supported by UNDP under the auspices of its Amplifying Youth Voice and Action (AYVA) project, in partnership with UNESCO Caribbean, Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, Planning Institute of Jamaica and RISE Life Management Services.

Throughout the summit, youth leaders will showcase citizen safety and security solutions spearheaded by their organisations with UNDP grant-funding through the AYVA project, and make the case for greater inclusion of young people in the development and implementation of policies addressing crime and violence.

In a joint statement issued on International Youth Day to announce the summit, youth leaders said they can and do play active roles as agents of positive and constructive change and believe that youth should be more involved in crime prevention and mitigation strategies. “Don’t just consult us for our ideas. Involve us in implementation and execution,” they declared.

Recalling United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security, the youth reminded policymakers of the resolution’s assertion that “young women and young men have a critical role in promoting and maintaining international peace and security”.

UNDP Resident Representative Denise E. Antonio said the multilateral agency is privileged to be working with young people on testing their citizen safety and security approaches, with an eye to upscaling promising projects. She said the youth summit was an excellent platform for showcasing the capabilities of youth innovation through the AYVA project and uncovering other youth initiatives that tackle crime and violence from its foundations.

“The challenge of crime and violence needs the inputs of the future generation who stand at its epicentre. We must facilitate and nurture the creative energies of our young people to secure a viable future and to ensure fulfilment of Sustainable Development Goal 16 – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions,” she said.

In underscoring the need for the summit, UNESCO Caribbean’s programme specialist for social and human sciences, Paula Isturiz Cavero, noted that 63 per cent of the population in the Caribbean are under the age of 30, making youth the key demographic that needs to be heard and meaningfully engaged. “Unfortunately, young people in the Caribbean face increasing levels of violence and crime which are also considerable bottlenecks towards achieving sustainable development. But when youth are provided with opportunities for engagement and participation they can capitalise on their resiliency and become invaluable assets for peacebuilding and agents of positive change,” Cavero noted.

Youth groups scheduled to present include: I-SEEED Youths; Youth Inspiring Positive Change Ja Ltd|YIPCJA (Positive ORG); Bully Proof Kids International (BPKI); National Police Youth Club Council Of Jamaica (NPYCCJ) Total Health Services; Norwood Community Development Benevolent Society (NCDCBS); The Every Mikkle Foundation; Called to Lead Jamaica; The Jahmekya Project and Youth For Development Network; Young Women/Men of Purpose (YWOP/YMOP). They are joined by Youths For Excellence, a regional youth NGO headquartered in Jamaica.

The two-day event will culminate with UNDP’s annual development challenge for tertiary students from Jamaica, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, The Bahamas, and Turks and Caicos Islands – nation states served by the UNDP multi-country office in Jamaica. The youth summit is the 2021 staging of UNDP’s annual Ready Set Great initiative, an annual showcase of youth doing great things to develop their country. The first Ready Set Great was staged in 2020 focusing on youth response and recovery in the era of COVID-19.