By Kyra Variyava
UNICEF Evaluation Office
Youth are the architects of our future, and UNICEF recognizes the importance of including them in its organizational blueprints. Committed to promoting participation and civic involvement, UNICEF has been making concerted efforts to ensure platforms for meaningful youth engagement in hopes of harnessing their creativity, innovation, and insight to drive change. In accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF strongly believes in the right of adolescents to participate in and influence decision-making processes. In 2019, UNICEF released the Guidance Note: Adolescent participation in UNICEF monitoring and evaluation to determine how best to involve the youth in the monitoring and evaluation process effectively, safely and meaningfully.
But is that enough? Does having a seat at the table guarantee room for their opinions and suggestions to be incorporated into the evaluation processes and translated into tangible action?
In line with the new UNICEF Evaluation Policy, it became imperative for the UNICEF Evaluation Office to rethink the design of the table for conducting evaluations of UNICEF policies, strategies and programmes- not merely to make space for the youth but to empower them to dominate the room.
Creating the Youth Advisory Group
In 2023, the UNICEF Evaluation Office called for expressions of interest from young individuals of diverse backgrounds, passionate about challenging gender inequalities and promoting positive and equitable behaviours in society, to join a Youth Advisory Group. This group would play a crucial role in the global evaluation of UNICEF Gender Policy and the implementation of gender action plans. From a competitive pool of applicants, a cohort of 12 members were shortlisted whose responsibilities include:
Providing unique insights and perspectives to the evaluation process to ensure inclusivity and youth-friendliness;
Sense-checking key evaluation questions such that they resonate with the youth demographic; and
Supporting the dissemination of results through youth networks and media.
While their participation is voluntary, this opportunity allows them to gain hands-on experience in the evaluation profession, have access to training and widen their network with professionals and fellow youth advocates in the field. UNICEF also provides support to members of the Youth Advisory Group to cover access to data and the internet to ensure their participation in meetings and other activities.
Youth perspectives in action: Evaluation for transformative results
As part of the second annual Youth in Evaluation week 2024, hosted by Eval4Action, five members of the Youth Advisory Group participated in a stimulating event, “Youth perspectives in action: Evaluation for transformative results”, on 10 July 2024. Aligned with the UN Summit of the Future 2024, this event aimed to foster greater commitment and action towards meaningful youth engagement in evaluation.
The event facilitated an engaging discussion among the Youth Advisory Group members and UNICEF staff Satvika Chalasani, Senior Gender Adviser, and Erica Mattellone, Senior Evaluation Specialist. Highlighting the importance of providing youth with the necessary tools and skills to advocate for themselves and the need for more significant opportunities for intergenerational collaboration, some of the key takeaways from the event were:
A need for diversity in perspective: Panelists spoke about the value of bringing diverse voices to the forefront, emphasizing how perspectives from varied backgrounds can lead to richer understanding of the problem and advance greater effectiveness in evaluation. “Diversity is something that unites us and brings value to our environments,” echoes Alliyah Logan, Education Advocate and Consultant at UNICEF
The invisible advocate: “Not all engagement looks the same,” contends Satvika Chalasani, who explains that while opportunities like this event aim to spotlight the efforts of youth advocates explicitly, a lot happens through programmes at the community level that are not often as visible. Many critical efforts, such as championing LGBTQ+ rights or girls’ right to education, occur quietly and without amplification and deserve equal acknowledgement
Capacity-building for youth-led initiatives: In fields such as evaluation which often have high barriers to entry for young people, it can be challenging to find spaces that embrace them as equal stakeholders rather than token representatives. It is critical for organizations to facilitate career development opportunities for the youth, honing their leadership and interpersonal skills.
UNICEF was also grateful to receive the Super Champion Award during the global launch of Youth in Evaluation week 2024 which spotlights organizations making an active effort in advancing meaningful youth engagement in evaluation. The champion awards are based on self-reported progress against the Youth in Evaluation standards of which UNICEF scored in the Exceeding requirement category. UNICEF is committed to uphold the honour of this title by continuing to foster an environment where youth voices are not just heard, but made a priority.
Reflecting on the essence of this stirring discussion, one of the panelists, Ana Cobano Cuesta, an International Affairs Graduate at Sciences Po University, poignantly captures the spirit of youth engagement by stating, “Our voices are meaningful and valuable in the policymaking process. We should have a seat at the table to engage substantially in these groups, not just as attendees but as actors and agents of change.”
To conclude, if we genuinely want to give the youth a seat at the table, we should stop placing their suggestions, opinions and experiences on high chairs, away from the conversation and action. True youth engagement transcends the bounds of the table-it means actively valuing and incorporating their voice to enhance the monitoring and evaluation process. The establishment of groups like the Youth Advisory Group safeguards their ability to make these contributions in a fruitful and effective manner, uniting diverse perspectives towards achieving a common goal. Thus, it is our responsibility to redesign the table to make space for their insights, transforming their role from placeholders into active architects of change.
This blog was co-published on the UNICEF website.
Kyra Variyava is an intern for the Institutional Effectiveness Team of the Evaluative Office at UNICEF Headquarters where she supports the conduct of independent evaluations by strengthening internal capacity and standardizing procedures, along with enhancing the communication and dissemination of evaluations. Connect with Kyra via LinkedIn and email.
Disclaimer: The content of the blog is the responsibility of the author(s) and does not necessarily reflect the views of Eval4Action co-leaders and partners.
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