World Youth Skills Day
Equipping youth with essential life tools, paving paths toward success beyond the classroom, shaping promising futures.
The planet now holds more youth than it ever has before! That’s why it is critical for young people to be prepared for the future with the skills they need to navigate adult life and thrive in the modern world.
World Youth Skills Day was founded to address the concerns of under-served youth while drawing attention to the need.
History of World Youth Skills Day
Sadly, many around the world youth are left behind, stuck at a crossroads of needing to work but finding themselves ill-equipped to do so. No longer able to simply find jobs for unskilled laborers, teens and young adults need to learn basic skills and get educated so they can reach their full potential in life, avoiding the trap of poverty and violence.
The inaugural celebration of World Youth Skills Day took place in 2015 when it was founded by the United Nations General Assembly . The organization decided to use the event to celebrate the strategic importance of making sure that teens and young people are equipped with skills for work, employment and entrepreneurship.
Each year, the United Nations provides a theme for World Youth Skills Day, to focus on a specific aspect or facet of the event. In recent years, themes have included some of these ideas:
- Skilling Teachers, Trainers and for a Transformative Future (2023)
- Transforming Youth Skills for the Future (2022)
- Re-imagining Youth Skills Post Pandemic (2021)
- Learning to Learn for Life and Work (2019)
How to Celebrate World Youth Skills Day
Take part in a vital cause to improve the future of the world for everyone by getting connected and involved with World Youth Skills Day. Consider some of these ideas for observing the day:
Host a Youth Skills Event
Schools, career centers, technical colleges and others can take World Youth Skills Day as an opportunity to host events that inspire students to pursue education. From skill showcases to mentoring programs, from development workshops to recognition and rewards, there are tons of ways to make a big deal out of this day!
Attend World Youth Skills Day Events
Teachers, youth workers, employers, social workers and so many others may be interested in celebrating World Youth Skills Day by attending educational and informational events on the subject. From online webinars to in person seminars, various educational institutions and government agencies may be offering events on the topics of empowering youth, promoting sustainability in the future, encouraging innovation, and so much more.
Learn Some Important Facts About Youth Skills
Those who are looking for more information to act as a motivation for celebrating and engaging with World Youth Skills Day might want to consider some of these facts and statistics according to World Vision:
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Young people represent only 25% of the world’s population, but are 40% of people who are unemployed
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In 2015, there were almost 74 million youth and young people (ages 15-24) who were looking for work in various places in the world
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Throughout the globe, the unemployment rate for youth is almost three times as high as that of adults
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Of those youth who are disproportionately affected by unemployment or limited job opportunities, young women are especially vulnerable
