Future Policy Award 2019: More about the shortlisted policies

In the following, you can read more about all the shortlisted policies of our Future Policy Award 2019.

 Estonia: Youth Field Development Plan, 2014-2020

The Estonian Youth Field Development Plan (2014–2020) is one of the first youth policies globally to fully respect the Baku Principles for Youth Policy, and one of the very few to emphasize the link between public policies for young people and sustainability and the environment. This comprehensive government policy for young people and the youth sector is knowledge-based and evidence-informed, participatory in development and implementation, gender-responsive, employs a holistic approach to youth development, and is fully resourced. Despite Estonia being one of the smallest and least populous European countries, and one of the youngest democracies on the continent, it has a rich history of youth work, youth research and youth policy, and an overall framework and strategy for the youth sector that is globally considered among the best. Estonia’s Youth Field Development Plan promotes high levels of engagement with youth workers, with 20% of youth workers participating in training programmes in a year, and young people, with more than 50% of all young people being involved in youth work activities in any given year. 

Europe: Co-Management of the Youth Sector of the Council of Europe, 1972

The Council of Europe’s Co-Management System is the longest-standing practice of participatory decision-making in the world, and one of the very few examples of shared decision-making between governments and young people with power shared in full 50:50 parity. Since its inception in 1963 and institutionalisation in 1972, more than 10,000 grants were awarded to youth organizations across Europe through the co-management system, with a cumulated volume of more than 130 million Euros. Between 2008 and 2017, activities involved 3,646,000 young people directly and benefitted 8,944,000 young people indirectly. Through its constant training and education activities, as well as its continuous grant-making, the Council of Europe has influenced and improved the youth sector profoundly in Europe and beyond. Its model for co-management has been applied in a wide range of other governance and/or policy contexts. Through its long traditions, the co-management system has proven to be resilient and sustainable, while at the same time also making space for new voices and integrating new youth organizations and networks as well as young people not involved in civil society associations. 

Nepal: Constitution, 2015, with Amendments through 2016

The Constitution of Nepal (2015) marked a major achievement for the country’s peaceful transition to democracy following the civil war between 1996 and 2006. The Constitution introduces a competitive multi-party democratic system, civic freedom, fundamental rights, human rights, periodic elections, voting rights, full freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary. It provides a vision of a prosperous nation, built on principles of the rule of law, democratic values, durable peace, good governance and sustainable development. It provides for the right to a healthy environment. Its articles 18.2 and 51.j (7) contain provisions for youth rights relating to participation and empowerment, as well as protections from discrimination. The Constitution of Nepal provides a progressive example of an inclusive constitution that addresses historical inequalities and creates a vision for a sustainable and prosperous future. Since its promulgation, a suite of youth policies and institutional developments have taken place, including the approval of the National Youth Policy (2015), which provides a national strategy for empowering young people, the establishment of the independent and autonomous National Youth Council (2015) and its Youth Data Portal, the Youth Vision 2025 and the Ten-Year Strategic Plan (2015) with its key action areas relate to education, employment, health, social security, leadership, development and sports, and the 14th Development Plan (2017), which includes a section on youth development and which includes a youth-specific target of 50,000 young people to be self-employed every year via the Youth Self-Employment Programme.  

Rwanda: YouthConnekt Initiative, 2012 

YouthConnekt is a multifaceted and innovative programme that connects youth to private sector and government employment, entrepreneurship opportunities and off-farm jobs. It is part of the Government’s goal to engage young people in building up the country and enhance their economic empowerment. Its comprehensive approach addresses key environmental, IT, health, social, cultural and economic issues. The programme has created a strong network of young entrepreneurs, policy influencers as well as a platform to share opportunities, advance skills, construct collaborations, promote promising entrepreneurs and showcase achievements. It has reached thousands of young Rwandans (aged 16-34) raising their awareness on issues such as employment, entrepreneurship and ICT, organized four YouthConnekt boot camps to coach 360 young innovators selected from the country’s 30 districts, and created more than 4,000 off-farm jobs. YouthConnekt also fosters civic engagement, promotes youth participation through the National Youth Council and contributes to raising intergenerational awareness about the genocide against the Tutsi. More than 18,000 youth have been directly engaged in national policy dialogues. From 2012-2018 around 600,000 young people participated every year in national YouthConnekt Month, a format that creates an enabling environment for Rwandan youth to contribute towards the welfare of their communities and enhance their role in national building. Since its inception by UNDP, in partnership with the Government of Rwanda and One UN Rwanda, it has evolved to become a flagship programme across Africa, was endorsed by the African Union as a major implementing modality of their African Youth Charter and led to the creation of YouthConnekt Africa in 2017. YouthConnekt Africa aims to create 20 million jobs. 

Senegal: National Strategy for the Promotion of Green Jobs, 2015-2020

In 2015, the Government of Senegal with the support of the Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) elaborated its first National Strategy for the Promotion of Green Jobs (SNEV Strategy) in a participatory manner. The SNEV Strategy serves as a reference framework for green jobs, strengthening the legislative, institutional and regulatory framework, creating green job opportunities, building human capacities, developing an appropriate financing policy, enabling advocacy, and setting up mechanisms for monitoring and promoting sustainability. Its goal was to create 5,000 decent and sustainable green jobs by 2022 and as of June 2019, about 2,000 green jobs have been created, indicating the Strategy is gradually on its way to achieving its initial targets. Young people and women constitute the majority of beneficiaries. Of the green job projects that have been created, 88% have been successful and/or were implemented satisfactorily. Recycling, aquaculture and forestry projects all generated a return on investment in the second year of production. The SNEV Strategy has also led to first steps of institution-building, inspiring the establishment of a National Platform on Green Economy. The strong political will behind the Strategy, which is currently being evaluated, indicates that it is likely that the Strategy will be continued beyond 2020. Furthermore, the policy is being taken as a model by other countries such as Burkina Faso and Ghana.

South Africa: Expanded Public Works Programme, 2004

In the context of endemic unemployment, South Africa’s Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) provides poverty and income relief through temporary, socially useful work, as the only social programme targeting South Africa’s unemployed adults. This nationwide programme – the country’s largest active labour market policy – has existed since 2004 and has been implemented in three phases. What makes it innovative is its large-scale nature, its inter-ministerial coordination, its expansion beyond the infrastructure sector to include non-state, social, environmental and cultural sectors, and the fact that it is directly targeted to youth and vulnerable groups. Since its inception, it has generated over 8 million work opportunities. In the most recently completed phase of the programme, 66% of beneficiaries were women, 46% were youth and 1% were people with disabilities. It has had a positive impact on income levels and, in Phase 2, 70% of participants had transitioned to longer-term self or formal employment, while delivering important public services. It is a global pioneer in environmental services, e.g. cleared over 2 million hectares of alien invasive plants. The programme is seen by the International Labour Organization (ILO) as a successful country experience, implementing many elements of ILO’s Recommendation No. 202.

United Kingdom, Scotland: Developing the Young Workforce, 2014

Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) is Scotland’s youth employment strategy, which is ensuring that all children and young people are better prepared for the world of work and equipped with the skills they need to have fair access to job opportunities. By creating the DYW framework the Scottish Government implements the recommendations made by the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce and expands work-based learning, with a special focus on disadvantaged youth. The DYW Strategy’s main function is to bring together the education systems, employers, civil societies, youth organizations and local authorities, in order to implement its guidelines and to include employers in shaping the curriculum so that young people gain the right qualifications. The DYW Strategy and implementation plan include milestones across all sectors. Equality, inclusion and STEM subjects are highlighted as areas of crucial importance with over a third of all key milestones relating to these areas. The DYW strategy incorporates the Learning for Sustainability (LfS). It became an integral part of the Scottish education system and is aligned with ambitious national goals to transform into a green economy and a fair society. Its headline target, to reduce youth unemployment by 40% by 2021, has been reached four years ahead of schedule and Scotland is now ranked among the top five countries in Europe. Official statistics of 2017, show that youth unemployment, excluding those in full-time education, fell from 52,000 in 2014 down to 27,000 in 2017. Furthermore, there has been a year on year increase in the number of school leavers attaining vocational qualifications, nearly doubling from 7.3% in 2013 to 14.8% in 2018. To date, 28,000 apprenticeships have been created in 2019. 

United States, Los Angeles: Green New Deal, 2019

Los Angeles launched its Green New Deal on 29 April 2019 with the aim to guide the city’s transition into an equitable and abundant economy powered by 100% renewable energy by 2045 that achieves 100% net zero emissions by 2050 and that creates 400,000 green jobs by 2050. It serves as an ambitious update to Los Angeles’ Sustainable City pLAn (pLAn) of 2015, which has already met or exceeded 90% of the near-term goals on time and earlier. Thanks to the pLAn, Los Angeles became the number-one solar city in America, pioneering new transportation technologies, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 11% in a single year and creating more than 35,000 green jobs. Los Angeles’ Green New Deal of 2019 builds hereon and contains more aggressive goals to support Los Angeles’ commitment to uphold the Paris Agreement. It is a comprehensive roadmap to increase efforts towards protecting the environment, strengthening of the economy, building a more equitable future and addressing environmental justice. The Green New Deal aims to tackle the climate emergency with accelerated targets and sets the city on course to be carbon neutral by 2050 – solidifying the city’s position as a national leader in solar energy, electric vehicle infrastructure and green jobs. It is an urban green new deal serving as an inspiring model for other cities across America and beyond. Indeed inspired in part by Los Angeles, more than 400 cities worldwide have declared climate emergencies and work together with Los Angeles towards a green transition through the C40 cities network.

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About the World Future Council
The World Future Council (WFC) works to pass on a healthy planet and fair societies to our children and grandchildren. To achieve this, we focus on identifying and spreading effective, future-just policy solutions and promote their implementation worldwide. Jakob von Uexkull, the Founder of the Alternative Nobel Prize, launched the World Future Council in 2007. We are an independent, non-profit organization under German law and finance our activities from donations. For information visit www.worldfuturecouncil.org