Today Over 50, 000 Young Zambians through the 1.8billion Campaign
Today, the globe has a larger population of young people than at any time in history yet far, there is still minor representation of young people in decision making and policy formulation positions despite the potential and prospects they possess to positively change developmental narratives in their countries.
In a groundbreaking initiative, the Partnership for Maternal Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH), tabulated that there are 1.8 billion adolescents and youths living in the world today whose needs are not being met and in light of this, the organisation embarked on the Global Forum for Adolescents Launch Event, as part of the 1.8 billion Campaign billed for October 2023 in Geneva. The Global Forum for Adolescents will be the largest gathering for adolescents across the globe aiming to unite young people for adolescent well-being.
Prior to the Global Forum for Adolescents, about 53 participating countries in the 1.8 billion campaign were tasked to collect 50,000 responses per country from adolescents on their needs through the ‘What Young People Want’ Initiative. Zambia through Copper Rose participated in this campaign by collecting over 50, 000 responses from adolescents reflecting their hopes for health and wellbeing.
Dr. Newton Donkola, Copper Rose Zambia Youth and Gender Officer expressed gratitude towards the initiative; “The 1.8 Billion “What Young People Want” Campaign is a huge leap in the right direction towards a world where young people are truly at the center of policy development and decision-making processes. Copper Rose Zambia (CRZ) spearheading this campaign in Zambia speaks to our deliberate effort to attain our mission of building a conducive environment for young people to thrive in all aspects of their lives because we understand that creating mechanisms to hear the true needs of young people and acting on them is a necessary precursor for change.”
He further elaborated that it’s overwhelming to see how much young people are aware of their concerns around their wellbeing, and this coupled with their eagerness to express themselves through mechanisms such as the 1.8 Billion “What Young People Want” Campaign is a perfect recipe to starting a long journey of creating a world we want to see by addressing one concern at a time.
Copper Rose Zambia successfully hit the 50, 000 milestone with most responses revealing how adolescents for long have been treated as under-dogs in policy and service delivery. This can be highlighted in one of the responses submitted by adolescents.
A Response Submitted by One of the Adolescents during the campaign
“To improve my wellbeing, I want my government to involve young people in decision making processes. Most young people fail to express their needs and concerns because their governments have not presented a variety of platforms for them to do so. Having an opportunity to participate in decision making processes will improve my wellbeing as a young person living in Zambia.”
Meanwhile, Strategic Advocacy Committee Secretary, PMNCH, Desmond Nji Atanga, explained in a news article that the Global Forum for Adolescents will take stock of three major outcomes; increasing financing, adolescent wellbeing, increasing service, and also better policies around that.
Copper Rose Zambia is determined to support various stakeholders working around adolescent wellbeing. However, policy makers equally need to show commitment as they recognize adolescent needs which include services for their Sexual and Reproductive Health, resilience, contributing to climate change mitigation, skills development and employability among other things.
