QUALITY STANDARDS 2. POLICY AND PLANNING

Moving forward municipal, regional and national decision-making for working for youth as beneficiaries, engaging with youth as partners and supporting youth as leaders.

Working for youth as beneficiaries

(Target group)

2.1 The policy/plan is consistent with international legal and policy frameworks, including non-discrimination: young women and men as citizens, assets and rights-bearers are an explicit theme in the policy/plan to the same extent as other social groups.

2.2 Young people’s views and experience (survey data) are part of the evidence-base and values-base for the policy.

2.3 There is an informed rationale behind the choice of young target groups, including gender and social exclusion analysis; there is a rationale for any differentiating of youth from older adults; the policy/plan does not conflate youth with pre-adolescent children.

Engaging with youth as partners

(Collaborators)

2.4 Clear procedures, lines of accountability and conflict resolution principles62 are in place to minimise the risk of intimidation/political reprisals.

2.5 There is firm commitment to implementation of the policy/plan (public statements in the media, financial resources), achieved via meaningful consultation with young people.

2.6 Feedback mechanisms are in place to share what recommendations and views have/have not been adopted and why.

Supporting youth as leaders

(Youth-initiators)

2.7 Engagement goes beyond consultation and pre-determined youth issues: young leaders help to determine topics, agendas and procedures.

2.8 Existing youth structures (national youth councils/parliaments) and their agendas are recognised – youth leaders are engaged on merit (attitude and performance) and youth-initiated processes are supported (see Standards 1.7 and 1.8).

2.9 Young leaders participate in policy processes across sectors, such as education, health and trade.

Supporting strategies

• Establish what youth policies and structures already exist. If there is a national youth policy check that there is an action plan, resources and mechanisms for it to function through (case studies 6, 9, 18).
• Consider the capacity needs of the youth ministry and raise its profile with other relevant departments (case studies 4, 18).
• Use the donor agency’s convening power to share promising practice between different sectors, in support of government’s mainstreaming efforts (case study 13).
• Establish realistic timeframes (case studies 6, 8). Ensure that delivery partners involve young people in the earliest stages of planning; utilise a range of arts/media to reach a representative sample of young people (case studies 5, 9, 13, 14, 17).
• Ensure delivery partners, translators, guardians and young people are briefed on their specific roles and responsibilities (case studies 7, 9) and seek the personal informed consent of all participants including under-18s (case studies 8, 11).
• Encourage delivery partners to explain the use of log frames/simplified log frames to young people if appropriate (case study 20).