• They also committed to more adolescent-friendly health services, greater support for mental well-being.
• Adolescent and Youth Constituency member Sahil Tandon said adolescents have specific health and well-being challenges often overlooked in policy and investment.
Image: FILE
Governments have renewed their commitment to set aside more resources to boost the welfare of young people.
This was demonstrated during the global forum for Adolescents session which was held from October 11 -12.
The event was hosted by PMNCH, the world’s largest alliance for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health.
The commitments which were put under 'Agenda for Action for Adolescents' seeks to highlight the need for far-greater action.
Among the areas the governments committed to look into include high quality education and skills training.
They also committed to more adolescent-friendly health services, greater support for mental well-being, more prevention of stigma and discrimination - including greater provision of comprehensive sexuality education.
PMNCH Adolescent and Youth Constituency member Sahil Tandon said adolescents have specific health and well-being challenges often overlooked in policy and investment.
"The Agenda for Action is intended to galvanise attention to where it is needed most and to align all partners in addressing these needs,” he said.
During the Global Forum, 17 governments highlighted their responses, announcing specific policy and financial commitments.
The governments are: Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo and South Africa.
Other governments pledging to improve adolescent health and well-being include Canada, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Portugal, Serbia, Sint Maarten, and the United States, as well as the African Union and the European Commission.
The Global Forum also served as a launching pad for a new health and education strategy developed by the African Union.
Other pledges focus on providing affordable, high-quality adolescent health and well-being services and strengthening the agency of adolescents and youth.
A youth activist Alims Blessing Iripa said listening to young people helps governments to learn from experiences and identify new ways to exploit.
"Investing in young people's health and well-being today will pay off in the future," she said.
PMNCH Board chair Helen Clark said we need more data-driven commitments to drive progress.
"This is the time for political commitment to new policies, more resources and increased funding overall. We need more data to drive those commitments and clear indicators on adolescent well-being to track progress," she said.
"All young people everywhere must have a fair chance to contribute to their own countries and to the world and, above all, to pursue their dreams."
Produced under the umbrella of the '1.8 Billion Young People for Change' campaign, the Global Forum for Adolescents is a key milestone in a multi-year advocacy drive led by the 1,400 partner-organizations of PMNCH and others.