BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 18. Children and youth
are the most affected by the current global housing crisis,
Jonathan Ricky, a member of the UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board and
Executive Director of the "Young Africans for a Sustainable Africa"
organization, told Trend on the sidelines of WUF13.
He first expressed his gratitude to UN-Habitat, the Human
Settlements Programme, and the Government of Azerbaijan for
creating this magnificent platform:
"Special importance must be given to providing speaking
platforms for children and youth. Young people want discussions to
result in practical steps. Their non-participation in core
decision-making creates serious problems.
We want young people to exchange ideas with ministers and
decision-makers, and to establish a sustainable dialogue with them.
The future belongs to children and youth, and leaders must pay
special attention to these matters.
The implementation of child-oriented and youth-oriented plans is
vital. Existing barriers must be removed. One of our
recommendations, based on the Baku Call to Action, is that the
views and decisions of youth and children be adequately taken into
account in urban planning. At the same time, we advocate for the
further strengthening of policies initiated and led by youth," he
noted.
