Question of youth

The General Assembly,

Recalling resolution 40/14 entitled "International Youth Year: Participation, Development, Peace", adopted on 18 November 1985 by the General Assembly acting as United Nations World Conference for the International Youth Year, and its resolution 42/54 of 30 November 1987,

Recalling its resolutions 32/135 of 16 December 1977 and 36/17 of 9 November 1981, by which it adopted guidelines for the improvement of the channels of communication between the United Nations and youth and youth organizations, and its resolution 42/55 of 30 November 1987,

Recalling also its resolutions 40/16 of 18 November 1985 and 42/53 of 30 November 1987, entitled "Opportunities for youth",

Recalling further its resolution 36/29 of 13 November 1981 and its subsequent resolutions in which it, inter alia, recognized the need to adopt appropriate measures for securing the implementation and the enjoyment by youth of human rights, particularly the right to education and to work,

Having considered the report of the Secretary-General submitted on the basis of its resolutions 42/52, 42/53, 42/54 and 42/55 of 30 November 1987,

Bearing in mind that the preparation for and observance in 1985 of the International Youth Year: Participation, Development, Peace offered a useful and significant opportunity for drawing attention to the situation and the specific needs and aspirations of youth, for increasing co-operation at all levels in dealing with youth issues, for undertaking concerted action programmes in favour of youth and for improving the participation of young people in the study, decision-making processes and resolution of major national, regional and international problems,

Recognizing that the guidelines for further planning and suitable follow-up in the field of youth provide a constructive framework for a long-term strategy in the field of youth,

Expressing its serious interest in systematically consolidating and building further on the results of the International Youth Year in order to contribute to the increasing active participation of young people in the political and socio-economic life of their countries,

Convinced of the importance of the effective and efficient functioning of the channels of communication between the United Nations and youth and youth organizations as a basic prerequisite for the adequate information of young people and their active participation in the work of the United Nations and the specialized agencies at the national, regional and international levels, and also for informing the United Nations of the problems facing youth, with a view to finding solutions to such problems,

Convinced that it is necessary to ensure full enjoyment by youth of the rights stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, with special regard to the right to education and to work,

Recognizing that in many countries the majority of young people, under prevailing critical social and economic conditions, are facing serious problems in the exercise of their right to education and to work and that insufficient education and unemployment of young people limit their ability to participate effectively in the development process, and emphasizing the importance of adequate education of young people and access for them to appropriate technical and vocational guidance and training programmes,

1.         Calls upon all States, all United Nations bodies, in particular the Economic and Social Council through its Commission for Social Development, the specialized agencies and the intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations concerned, in particular youth organizations, to continue to exert all possible efforts for the implementation of the guidelines for further planning and suitable follow-up in the field of youth, in accordance with their experience, conditions and priorities, and to submit to the Secretary-General their views and proposals on the specific ways and means to implement fully the guidelines;

2.         Requests the Secretary-General to promote and monitor intensively, by using the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the Secretariat as a focal point, the inclusion of youth-related projects and activities in the programmes of the United Nations bodies and of the specialized agencies, specifically on such themes as communication, health, housing, culture, youth employment and education;

3.         Calls upon Member States, United Nations bodies, the specialized agencies and other governmental and intergovernmental organizations to implement fully the guidelines relating to the channels of communication adopted by the General Assembly in its resolutions 32/135 and 36/17, not only in general terms but also by concrete measures that take into account the issues of importance to young people;

4.         Requests the Secretary-General to continue in this respect to make use at the national, regional and international levels of the already existing structures of co-operation between youth and the United Nations system in accordance with the additional guidelines for the improvement of the channels of communication between the United Nations and youth and youth organizations, contained in the annex to resolution 36/17, and to encourage other United Nations bodies and specialized agencies to do the same;

5.         Also requests the Secretary-General to develop methods that specifically indicate how the channels of communication could efficiently be attuned to youth-related projects and activities of the United Nations organs and of the specialized agencies, and to include in his report thereon to the General Assembly concrete suggestions for co-operation between the United Nations system and the non-governmental youth organizations;

6.         Calls upon youth mechanisms that have been set up by youth and youth organizations at the national, regional and international levels to continue to act as channels of communication between the United Nations and youth and youth organizations by putting forth their proposals for co-operation with the United Nations system and, where such mechanisms do not exist, recommends that national co-ordinating committees of the International Youth Year should similarly continue to act as channels of communication;

7.         Calls upon all States, all governmental and non-governmental organizations, interested United Nations bodies, in particular the Economic and Social Council through its Commission for Social Development, and specialized agencies to continue to give priority to the formulation and implementation of effective measures for securing the exercise by youth of the right to education and to work, with a view to resolving the problem of unemployment among youth;

8.         Calls upon Member States to pay increased attention to the promotion of youth employment in all sectors of the economy in order to enable more young people to obtain appropriate education and vocational training, thereby facilitating their integration into social and professional life;

9.         Invites national co-ordinating bodies and bodies implementing policies and programmes in the field of youth to give appropriate priority in the activities to be undertaken after the International Youth Year: Participation, Development, Peace to the implementation and the enjoyment by youth of human rights, particularly the right to education and to work;

10.       Stresses the importance for youth and youth organizations of the freedom of association, in accordance with the relevant national legislation, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other relevant international human rights instruments, so as to enable their active and direct participation at all stages of implementation of the policies, projects and activities organized at the local, national, regional and international levels in the field of youth, and stresses the need to intensify the efforts for educating youth in accordance with national experience, conditions and priorities and to act effectively as channels of communication;

11.       Emphasizes that providing education and employment to each young person is a worthy goal for all States and should serve the full development of the human being, which can best be ensured by countries that respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of everyone;

12.       Notes with appreciation the establishment by the Government of Austria of a permanent secretariat of the Institute of HOPE '87, for the promotion of youth employment;

13.       Recommends that the Secretary-General continue to explore the possibilities for the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs to support, within the framework of its activities, the work of the Institute of HOPE '87 secretariat, including the question of affiliating, on the basis of the relevant regulations of the United Nations and the proposed letter of understanding, as outlined in his report, the Institute of HOPE '87 secretariat to the Centre, on the understanding that the financial resources for the secretariat would be raised exclusively from special voluntary contributions;

14.       Invites Governments again to include youth representatives in their national delegations to the General Assembly and other relevant United Nations meetings and international conferences dealing with youth-related issues, thus enhancing and strengthening the channels of communication through the discussion of such issues, with a view to finding solutions to the problems confronting youth in the contemporary world;

15.       Requests the Secretary-General to consider including, on an annual basis, the United Nations Youth Fund among the programmes for which funds are pledged at the United Nations Pledging Conference for Development Activities;

16.       Requests the Secretary-General to prepare a report on the implementation of the present resolution, paying attention to the deliberations and conclusions of the Commission for Social Development in March 1989, and to submit it to the General Assembly at its forty-fourth session under the item entitled "Policies and programmes involving youth";

17.       Decides to consider the item entitled "Policies and programmes involving youth" at its forty-fourth session on the basis of the report of the Secretary-General.