With a sense of determination and optimism, they want their voices to be heard, they want to participate in politics and be the initiators of inclusive civic engagement. They face many challenges - from unemployment to poverty and exclusion - and yet, they are rising up to challenge every economic, social, and political structure, and speak out for justice, nonviolence, and human rights.
Lebanese youth have always been heralds of the values of democracy and have shown the world that they can positively contribute to peacebuilding. There can be no sustainable development in the country if Lebanese youth remain on the sidelines. More urgently than ever before, there is a need to give them a voice, to place them at the center of long-term change and strengthen their role as drivers of peace and stability in this war-torn region.
The youth can be crucial elements in achieving peace and security if methodical and realistic youth participation is promoted. This approach was highlighted and echoed in UNDP’s recently published report “Arab Human Development Report 2016: Youth and the Prospects for Human Development in a Changing Reality,” which calls upon Arab States, including Lebanon, to invest in their youth and empower them so they can engage in the development processes. The region’s young people face numerous difficulties related to education, labor markets, unemployment, and exclusion from the formal economy, as well as the struggle of maintaining independent households and starting families, among other things. New and more durable foundations for stability cannot be established without the participation of empowered and engaged youth who must voice their concerns and express their ideas.
The report does not merely call for developing youth policies and strategies; it also suggests a more comprehensive reformulation of sectoral and general policies in the Arab region based on a new development model to meet the needs and aspirations of young people, particularly in light of the region’s changing economic, political, and social reality.
Using this supplement as a medium and a forum, we wish to discuss both the realities and hopes of Lebanese, Syrian, and Palestinian youth in Lebanon, and possibly one day, the entire Arab region. The themes addressed in this issue are centered on youth residing in Lebanon and include delinquency, statelessness, problems related to historical narratives, education-related issues, and many more. These young people deserve strong, functional state institutions that can respond to their needs. Hopefully, and following the end of a two year power vacuum and political paralysis, the Lebanese state can deliver a more solid foundation upon which to grow.
I hope you enjoy reading the exciting and inspiring articles that we have compiled for this supplement. We look forward to a new year with less violence and more peace!