World Scouting statement on UN Security Council youth debate

4 minutes

Kuala Lumpur, 24 April: The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) welcomes the independent progress study on Youth, Peace and Security, and the first open debate on the topic held by the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Monday.

Every week, over 50 million Scouts in 169 countries get together in their communities to benefit from the non-formal education offered by Scouting. Many of these meetings happen in countries affected by conflict and displacement, where Scouting offers young people an opportunity for participation, protection and prevention. We believe that young people globally will benefit from the progress study on Youth, Peace and Security and the commitment shared by Member States in the open debate. World Scouting stands ready to play its role in driving forward the outcomes of the study.

As we note this important progress, this year the World Scouting will mark a historic milestone by completing one billion hours of service under our flagship initiative Messengers of Peace. The hours of services have been observed on Scout.org over the past six years. The “Messengers of Peace” initiative is designed to motivate young people to promote peace through community service. Additionally, our newly launched “Dialogue for Peace” programme will give millions of young people the opportunity to strengthen their dialogue skills to act as facilitators, mediators or enablers of opportunities to create dialogue and understanding.

Together, these programmes are part of World Scouting’s contribution to the areas outlined in UNSC Resolution 2250, adopted in December 2015. The resolution recognises the positive contributions of young people in building peaceful and resilient communities, and urges Member States to increase representation of young people at all levels of decision-making.

Today's generation of young people is the largest in history and accounts for many of the civilians affected by conflict and displacement, so their participation is fundamental to achieve sustainable peace and security.

World Scouting reaffirms its commitment as an active partner on Youth, Peace and Security, and commends the efforts by the UN Security Council, UN Member States, Non-Governmental Organizations and other relevant stakeholders. We look forward to the Council’s upcoming vote on a new resolution related to Youth, Peace and Security.

Ahmad Alhendawi
Secretary-General
World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM)
Active Citizenship Dialogue for Peace Government Messengers of Peace Organization Peace Sustainable Values and Lifeskills World Scouting