LocationsYouth leading local change for global impact: Celebrating 2025 International Youth Day
August 12, 2025
Youth are driving the transformation to safe, sustainable and inclusive societies.
The Arab region is currently home to its largest-ever youth cohort, with over 110 million young people aged 15–29 making up around 30 percent of the population. With 60 percent of the population below the age of 30, there is an extraordinary opportunity — and responsibility — to support youth as agents of change in shaping the region’s future. Yet youth continue to face structural, legal and socioeconomic challenges. Regional youth unemployment is at 27.6 percent (ILO Stats, 2024), up from 19.5 percent in 2012. Many young people still lack equal access to quality health and education services. Restrictive legal frameworks, outdated electoral systems, and the absence of institutionalized youth participation continue to restrict their access to meaningful decision-making spaces. Less than 2 percent of parliamentarians in the region are under 30- a stark reminder of the governance gap that weakens intergenerational policy dialogues and responsive policymaking.
Despite these obstacles, youth across the region are stepping up — innovating, engaging, and leading change from the ground up.
When systems fall short, young people step in.
In contexts where institutions may not always meet expectations, young people are building their own pathways forward. From volunteering to climate action, entrepreneurship to civic innovation, youth-led initiatives are helping local communities respond to pressing needs while planting seeds for greater impact.
Small actions matter — and they add up.
These grassroots efforts may seem modest at first glance, but they often provide practical solutions, localize global goals, and strengthen community trust. In many ways, they pave the way for potential systemic shifts.
Celebrating International Youth Day 2025: “Local Youth Actions for the SDGs and Beyond”
Today marks the International Youth Day (IYD). This year’s theme for International Youth Day (IYD) shines a spotlight on the power of youth-led local action.
Localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is not just about policy alignment — it is about lived realities. It is about how young people use their creativity, energy, and insights to build more just, green, and inclusive futures where they live.
This is a moment to reaffirm the centrality of youth agency, voice, and leadership in sustainable development. It is a call to strengthen youth inclusion in local governance, amplify their ideas, and provide them with the space, tools, and support to act.
Across the Arab States region, youth are doing just that.
They are mobilizing their peers, piloting initiatives, supporting marginalized groups, and shaping the public discourse. Their stories remind us that no effort is too small when the goal is a better future for all.
Stories below highlight stories of youth across the Arab States making a difference — one initiative at a time.
In Tunisia, Adem Guesmi, 18 years old, has already emerged as a voice for climate justice. Representing Tunisian youth at COP28, LCOY Tunisia, and Climate Future Week 2023, he helped draft national youth climate position papers advocating for inclusive and just climate solutions aligned with SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). His growing leadership earned him a role as the regional youth delegate and negotiator at the World Governments Summit 2025, where he articulated the priorities of Arab youth to regional leaders.
As President of his city’s Local Youth Council, Adem led two flagship initiatives. The first brought together more than 300 youth in a two-month climate awareness and action programme, combining expert-led training with hands-on community activities. The second targeted the rehabilitation of deteriorating schools through field assessments and international partnerships, resulting in significant renovations and the construction of a local football stadium with support from the Municipality of Stuttgart. Through UNDP’s Youth Engagement in NDCs initiative, I engaged in my country’s NDC process through workshops and capacity-building, gaining the vision, skills, and tools to drive impactful climate action and mobilize youth for a sustainable future. Adem thinks that “leadership is about responsibility, acting with what you have, where you are is crucial, my work reflects how empowered youth can become a driving force for sustainable development.”
In Jordan, Du’aa Ibrahim Al-Faraya, a 24-year-old chemical engineer, is shaping the entrepreneurial landscape with a clear focus on youth empowerment and sustainable development. She participated in the national “Jordan in Figures” programme and was nominated by UNDP to particiate at the Knowledge youth forum in Dubai and share here story, she adds “My path was shaped by an early desire to address systemic challenges facing young people, during my participation in the programme, I saw the urgent need for meaningful opportunities for youth entering the workforce and how youth can engage with decision makers for an inclusive future.”
Now Du’aa serves as a coordinator at iPARK, the Royal Scientific Society’s business incubator, she has supported over 45 startups in just two years, helping them grow into professional, opportunity-creating ventures aligned with SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). These businesses have gone on to deliver specialized training, generate jobs, and foster inclusive economic growth in their communities.
Du’aa has navigated and challenged gender barriers, transforming obstacles into opportunities to advocate for more inclusive, gender-responsive spaces for innovation. Her work demonstrates how investing in youth potential not only changes individual lives but also builds stronger, more equitable local economies.
In Lebanon, Carole Nassreddine, 25 years old, bridges the worlds of science, community action, and policy advocacy. A Master’s student in Chemical Engineering at the American University of Beirut, her research addresses environmental pollutants and models strategies to reduce their impact. But Carole believes sustainability cannot remain confined to research, it must be practiced in daily life.
Over the past year, she has delivered more than 15 awareness sessions on sustainable waste management and clean energy solutions, engaging over 350 youth and community members. Her participation in the NDC Bootcamp by UNDP Lebanon contributed to shaping the country’s updated climate commitments, and as a member of the Youth Leadership Program’s Advisory Board, she continues to amplify youth-led innovation in policymaking.
Her influence extends beyond national borders. In 2024, Carole represented Lebanon at the Regional High-Level Meeting on Young People’s Learning, Skilling, and Transition to Decent Work in Tunisia, helping define priorities in education and climate action. As the Regional Focal Point for West Asia under UNEP’s Children and Youth Major Group, she mobilizes young voices for stronger environmental governance. Recently, she became the sole MENA youth representative at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference 2025, carrying the perspectives and solutions of her community to a global stage.
Carole believes that “Localizing the SDGs is about justice, inclusivity, and concrete action — not just envisioning a better system, but building it step by step, even in fragile contexts.”
In Jordan, Hala Qashou, 24 years old, is an environmental activist and advocate for social justice whose work has driven tangible policy change. As the co-founder of the “LAHA” initiative, part of a youth-led UNDP effort, Hala and her team combat workplace discrimination against women. Recognizing the urgency of this issue, their advocacy contributed to a landmark decision by the Ministry of Labor to enact a law preventing the dismissal of pregnant women and extending maternity leave.
This milestone strengthened women’s workplace rights and advanced Sustainable Development Goal 5 (Gender Equality). Through interviews, a public blog documenting cases, and the dissemination of key labor law articles, Hala worked to raise awareness and mobilize action against workplace discrimination. Hala believes that “tackling these inequities is about building a more inclusive society where women’s rights are protected, and young leaders are empowered to drive systemic change.”
UNDP ShababEEK — Supporting youth from the ground up
As we celebrate International Youth Day and the power of local youth action, UNDP ShababEEK continues to stand with young people across the Arab region — providing resources, tools and skills they need to lead change. Through targeted economic empowerment, entrepreneurship support and civic engagement initiatives, ShababEEK helps transform local ideas into sustainable livelihoods and community impact.
Under the Danish‑Arab Partnership Programme (DAPP) Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator (2022–2027), UNDP supports SMEs — including youth-led enterprises — in Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and Algeria. Over dynamic accelerator journeys, startups receive business development advisory, capacity building, 1:1 mentorship, access to experts and networks, and investor linkages to turn green business plans into jobs for youth. Sustainability meets innovation here: the Accelerator uses the SDGs as strategic guides to help SMEs develop greener products, production processes and market strategies while prioritizing job creation for young talent.
In Lebanon and Palestine, UNDP — in partnership with The Big Heart Foundation — delivered a focused entrepreneurship initiative to strengthen youth-led startups, tackle structural barriers, and enhance services around registration, management, access to finance and market entry (including foreign markets). Though the project concluded in October 2023, several startups continue to operate, innovate and foster resilience within their communities despite recent tragic events — a testament to the lasting impact of targeted youth entrepreneurship support.
ShababEEK also invests in youth civic engagement and climate leadership. Our Youth Engagement in NDCs initiative- in partnership with the Arab Youth center- has supported over 235 people across four countries, helping young actors engage with national climate plans and localize climate commitments. Similarly, in partnership with the Arab Youth Center, the Youth Development Delegates programme continues to work with youth to shape the development agenda from within UNDP while also amplifying young voices in policy and community action, strengthening the link between local priorities and national goals.
Through the NextGenYouth platform, ShababEEK expands its reach into the digital sphere — creating a one-stop virtual hub for young changemakers to connect, learn and collaborate across borders. The platform offers tailored learning pathways on entrepreneurship, climate action, and civic engagement, alongside interactive toolkits, mentorships with industry leaders, and peer-to-peer exchange spaces. The NextGenYouth bridges geographic and resource gaps, ensuring that young people from remote and underserved communities can access the same high-quality skills, opportunities, and networks as their urban peers. It nurtures a new generation of leaders who are tech-savvy, sustainability-minded, and ready to turn ideas into impactful action.
Combined, these initiatives reach thousands of young people across the region — equipping them with practical skills, mentorship, finance-readiness and networks so they can lead locally and think globally. As youth keep building, innovating, and overcoming barriers, UNDP ShababEEK will keep investing in their potential: because when youth lead from the ground up, communities thrive and the SDGs become real, local achievements.
On Youth International day 2025, we celebrate all youth efforts and remain committed –together with our partners- to supporting them across the region as they drive transformation towards a better future, offering innovative ideas, solutions, and the energy to meet local and global challenges.
Join us in supporting and celebrating these local wins — and in tackling the challenges that remain.
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