Ban Ki-Moon, Dialogue with the Youth of Five Continents

The General Secretary of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon took part this Tuesday (11th April 2012) in an ongoing dialogue with the youth of the whole world. The participants represented all the continents. The six youngsters had been selected for the consultations between the UN, civil society and as representatives of the universities. They discussed different topics, such as youth unemployment, technology, and the rights of women, thanks to Google+.

Ban Ki-Moon stated that his ears are always open to hear the voice of the youth, as he can learn a lot from listening to it. Answering a question concerning the job done by the UN to help education systems and entrepreneurs in the field of technology, he explained that education was of utmost importance, as it opens opportunities. He also expressed his strong will to amend the quality of competences obtained in the education systems to let young people gain real 21st century skills.

He also answered the question of a young African woman relating to the state of women. He made it clear that he is very worried about their difficult situation and tries to enforce the governments around the world to give greater importance to women. Concerning the health of women, he said that in every minute and a half a woman dies during pregnancy or childbirth and in every minute one is infected with HIV. Something must be done to protect women, he added.

He also shared that he is committed to granting major importance to the youth in the UN, and is intending to nominate a special adviser on the youth.

During this 45-minute-conversation, Mr Ban encouraged the youngsters to become world citizens. He explained that the youth can change the world in one moment, thanks to technology.

The Secretary General also invited the young to take part in the global initiatives of the UN, such as the sustainable development (Rio+20) project, to be held in June in Brazil and the Youth Employment Forum in May in Geneva, which is organised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).