UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday praised the younger generations for commendably rising to face the challenges of the world and standing up for a more sustainable world in a message shared on the occasion of International Youth Day
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th August, 2020) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday praised the younger generations for commendably rising to face the challenges of the world and standing up for a more sustainable world in a message shared on the occasion of International Youth Day.
"They are the young people who have risen up to demand climate action. They are mobilizing for racial justice and gender equality and are the champions of a more sustainable world," Guterres was quoted in the congratulatory message.
Guterres emphasized the efforts undertaken by young women in mobilizing global action during challenging times.
"Many are young women who have been on the frontlines in mobilizing for justice and climate action � while also serving on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response," the former Portuguese prime minister said.
President of the UN General Assembly Tijjani Mohammad-Bande echoed Guterres' call, saying that world leaders shoulder the responsibility to ensure equitable opportunities and rights for the world's 1.2 billion young people.
"It is your right, and our global responsibility, to ensure that people everywhere have access to just and equitable opportunities to fulfill their rights and aspirations. The potential for humanity to create a peaceful, prosperous future will not be reached as long as inequities and discrimination against youth remain commonplace, and young people lack opportunities to have their voices heard," Muhammad-Bande said in a video address.
The International Youth Day was designated by the UN in 1999 and was marked by annual conferences and events at UN national headquarters around the world, but was observed in a limited capacity this year due to the pandemic.
Since the 2008 economic crisis, analysts and social scientists have emphasized millennials, young people born throughout the 1980s and 1990s, are faced with unique economic and sociological challenges not seen by previous generations.
