Publisher: Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC)
Publication date: September 2016
Executive Summary
Seldom consulted, frequently overlooked, and often unable to fully participate in decision making, the talents, energy, and potential of Refugee Youth—young people aged 15-24 years old—remain largely untapped. This must change. Refugee Youth want the same things young people everywhere want: to be consulted, to be listened to, to contribute, to engage, and to be part of solutions. They want opportunities, education, employment, and inclusion.
UNHCR and the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC) undertook the Global Refugee Youth Consultations (GRYC) to amplify youth “voices” in decisions that affect them. The GRYC included 1,267 young people who participated in 56 national or sub-national consultations held in 22 countries between October 2015 and June 2016. The GRYC were the beginning of a process—a process that must continue to develop the leadership, capacity, and futures of Refugee Youth everywhere. This Executive Summary highlights the outcomes of the GRYC process—Seven Core Actions for Refugee Youth (Core Actions), and ten challenges for Refugee Youth—and summarises recommendations for the full range of actors engaged in humanitarian response—including States, multi-lateral organisations, international and national civil society organisations, traditional and non-traditional donors, and community and youth groups (humanitarian actors)—to take the Core Actions forward. The full report—“We Believe in Youth” —provides more detail on these outcomes and recommendations.
Download full report here.
