Enabling Governance Systems

YOTA’s activities in this area ensure that more youth fully participate, lead and engage in political institutions and processes. This includes support for political decision-making bodies (including parliaments, local governments, political parties) and elections management bodies to be youth-sensitive. We work to address the negative stereotypes that work against youth leadership, including through the building of intergenerational partnerships. In particular, we work to support young women and youth with disabilities to reach decision-making positions.

YOTA engages with justice institutions and makes them more accessible to and deliver for youth in all contexts. This includes support for promoting the rule of law, the ratification and implementation of relevant international standards for youth empowerment, repealing discriminatory legislation and tackling social norms that support such legislation.

YOTA’s support includes building the capacity of youth to become agents of accountability, transparency, integrity and anti-corruption across governance institutions and systems;

developing capacities for institutions at all levels to promote youth-responsive governance providing technical assistance to finance and sector ministries to integrate youth perspectives into policies, plans and budgets; developing capacity of national youth architectures and youth organisations; developing policy knowledge on the key drivers for youth-responsive governance; efforts to raise awareness about the human rights of youth; and building partnerships with government institutions and parliaments to support the realisation of the human rights of youth, including through the repeal or amendment of discriminatory laws.