UN promotes youth volunteerism development

Organised by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the "Asia-Pacific Forum on Youth Volunteerism to Promote Participation, Development and Peace" also aims to form cross-regional and cross-cultural youth service networks in the region.

According to the UN, more than 80 million young people of working age in the Asia-Pacific region are unemployed and in several countries youth are as  much  as  seven times more likely to be unemployed than adults. Lacking sufficient economic and social opportunities, many of them are forced into high-risk and vulnerable forms of employment, while others have given up on the job search altogether.

Among the participants were representatives of government agencies dealing with youth issues, civil society, development partners and the private sector, who engaged in debates and discussions on enhancing partnerships in the sectors of environment, health, disaster response, peace and development, entrepreneurship and education.