Adolescents and youth

Adolescents as innovators

© UNICEF/INDA2012-00186/P. Vishwanathan

India: Adoloscent girls react during a nutrition demonstration using THR (take home ration) for pregnant mothers and post natal mothers.

Adolescents are innovators, advocates and leaders. They are agents of change in their communities and dynamic contributors in global forums. They are engaged and have valuable ideas on how to tackle present global challenges. For instance, the active engagement of Egyptian youth in the civic process is helping transform the country's political landscape.

Acknowledging adolescents as positive assets reorients our perspective on this phase of life and encourages their multi-level inclusion in our projects. In Uganda, U-report, a new communications technology is revolutionizing social mobilization, monitoring and response efforts to address human rights issues throughout the country.

In doing so, it is also equipping legions of young mobile phone users with the tools to establish and enforce new standards of transparency and accountability in development programming and the delivery of services.