Redhead Royal guides discussion on youth policy in Commonwealth members
His Royal Highness, Prince Harry the Duke of Sussex this week conducted his first policy dialogue as the Commonwealth Youth Ambassador, a position to which he was appointed in 2018. The meeting at the Commonwealth headquarters is the first to focus solely on youth policy in the 53 Commonwealth member countries.
‘The Roundtable Policy Discussion’, hosted by Commonwealth Secretary General Patricia Scotland, was attended by ministers and senior officials responsible for youth development in Commonwealth countries.
The roundtable was part of the ongoing Commonwealth strategy to engage and support ministers and senior officials in the delivery of youth policy priorities as identified by young people themselves and by youth workers from throughout the Commonwealth.
Prince Harry offered perspectives drawn from his own interactions with young people during his first year as Commonwealth Youth Ambassador.
The agenda included policy recommendations for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2020, regional specific strategies to promote youth development over the next 12 months in accordance with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and the future of the Commonwealth for young people as it continues to build on 70 years of pioneering achievement for youth.
Secretary General Scotland told the gathering that their input and involvement are critical to the successful implementation of the mandates from the London CHOGM of 2018, and that proposals generated at the roundtable discussion will be taken forward to the next CHOGM, to be held next year in Rwanda.
‘Doing nothing is not an option, business as usual is not enough, we must identify and prioritise what needs to be done and move to the implementation of practical actions,” she said.
The 53 Commonwealth countries are all former dominions in the British Empire.
