About the Youth Working Group

The DFID Civil Society Organisations Youth Working Group is a network of charities and other civil society organisations.

It meets as a Full Working Group and Sub Groups ad is supported by a Steering Committee

We commit to working towards a secure and sustainable world free of poverty, disease and injustice in which young people are empowered as equal partners in promoting development, democracy, peace and social justice.

We believe young people have the right to participate in development decisions that affect them, their families, communities and nations - and to make change.

We see young people as a catalyst for transforming our societies and an essential asset for all efforts to address the urgent development issues facing us globally. We also recognise that young people face particular challenges and have distinct needs.

As partners, we commit to working with young people to build their capacities and agency, to champion an asset-based approach to youth development and to advocate for adequate resource allocation to meet the urgent needs of young people.

Our vision was informed by a Situational Analysis.

The Youth Working Group consists of of core Steering Committee and a number of Sub Groups who focus on particular isues.

Membership of the Youth Working Group is not, at present, greatly formalised. The majority of members are officers or leaders of UK based NGOs, but the group also has a large number of active young participants - who are involved either through the youth participation structures of UK NGOs (e.g. youth boards of development charities) or on an independent voluntary basis.

Meetings of the Steering Group take place regularly, and a number of full Youth Working Group meetings take place each year. These will be announced on our main mailing list.

The Subgroups meet on an ad-hoc basis according to need.

You can read about our Aims, Objectives and Targets.

In July 2007 a set of Terms of Reference for the Youth Working Group were drafted.

You can download a PDF copy of our Vision Statment, Terms of Reference and Aims & Objectives