Post-COVID19 Recovery- Youth Development

Report On Post-COVID19 Recovery Youth Development Report On Post-COVID19 Recovery Youth Development Table of contents 1. Foreword 05 2. Preface 06 3. Policy Recommendations 07 Art and Culture 07 Youth-led Response 07 Education and Skill Development 09 Health and Wellbeing 10 Employment & Entrepreneurship 10 9. Discussion Sessions and Key Points 11 10. Moving Forward 15 Foreword The world is facing severe socio-economic challenges due to the COVID19 pandemic. Long-lasting intergenerational impacts have been anticipated where youth and the next generation will shoulder longer-term socio-economic costs. Youth are experiencing education disruption, business closure, job loss, and psychological stress that is affecting their transitions to adulthood. During this pandemic, the youth also are helping each other and raising awareness in their communities and online-networks. Moreover, the post-COVID19 world will be a new world order where the youth have to adjust to new sets of employability skills, economic activities, extensive health measures, and new learning approaches. Young Bangla, the youth platform of Centre for Research and Information (CRI), in association with other stakeholders, hosted a series of Online Let’s Talk on COVID19 Recovery: Youth Development on September 04-06, 2020. This policy talk series offered an inclusive platform for a broad range of stakeholders to emphasize on policy actions that would collectively advance the post-COVID19 youth development agendas. The insights and analysis presented in this policy talk series have set a signicant cornerstone for the post-COVID19 deliberations and will reinforce the promise of post-COVID19 youth development and transform the lives of youth across the country. This post-event policy report places post-COVID19 youth development preferences at the forefront of the analyses. The key message of this report is that the government along with different stakeholders needs to outline and implement pragmatic measures to mitigate post-COVID19 impacts related to youth and involve youth in the recovery measures wherein they can step up and contribute in nation building. Young Bangla has compiled the insights, perspectives, and recommendations of the discussants into this report as a signicant source of information for policy makers, academics, researchers, social workers, development professionals, youth representatives and other respective stakeholders. We are optimistic that they will adopt and apply the suggestions and recommendations compiled here to meet the rising aspirations of the Bangladeshi youth and assist in realizing the recently published aims and objectives of Vision 2041. Trustee, Centre for Research and Information (CRI) 05 Preface Bangladesh is reputed as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. As Bangladesh enjoys a demographic dividend, young people are co-partners in the journey towards Vision 2041, the aim to become a developed and prosperous nation by 2041. Hence, issues related to youth are getting a central focus amongst development stakeholders. Vision 2041 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) admit youth as a key driving force. Recognizing the signicance of youth development, the government has started investing substantially in education, skills development, employment, sports, recreation, and health, among others. Since March 2020, the COVID19 pandemic has severely disrupted all aspects of their life like other age groups. COVID19 induced shutdown has resulted in education disruption, business closure, and job loss for the young population. Psychological stress among young people has heightened due to distancing from sports, socialization, and entertainment. Moreover, youth and the next generations may have to accept the long-term harmful socio-economic consequences of this public health crisis. The post-COVID19 world will be a new socio-economic order where the youth have to adjust to new sets of employability skills, economic activities, extensive health measures, and new learning modes. To avoid the adverse consequences and to involve youth in nation building, the government needs to take appropriate measures to address the challenges and their impacts, and take necessary recovery actions. Young Bangla is one of the largest youth platforms in Bangladesh and working with a large youth community for over ve years. It has always tried to hear the concerns of Bangladeshi youth. Since the outbreak of this pandemic, Young Bangla has organized several webinar consultations with young people on health and safety, social distancing, volunteerism, and volunteer safety guidelines. Subsequently, Young Bangla organized online consultations and Let’s Talks with a range of policymaker including ministers, parliamentarians, academics, researchers, social Workers, professionals, student representatives, and successful youth change makers to discuss youth development during and after the COVID19 pandemic. In the said consultations and Let’s Talk sessions, panellists have recommended integrated youth-friendly development policies and actions to be taken in the post COVID19 recovery phase. Following on from the consultations during the shutdown, and to consolidate the suggestions for moving forward, Young Bangla in association with different stakeholders hosted a series of Online Let’s Talk on COVID19 Recovery: Youth Development on September 04-06, 2020, where it presented a post-COVID19 recovery framework for youth development. This framework was prepared based on the suggestions and recommendations obtained during different consultations and Let’s Talk organized by Young Bangla during the COVID19 pandemic, from March to June 2020. In addition, this policy talk series offered an inclusive platform for a broad range of stakeholders to emphasize on policy actions that would collectively advance the post-COVID19 youth development agendas. This report is the compilation of the insights, perspectives, and recommendations of the discussants which can serve as a signicant source of key information for policy makers, academics, researchers, social workers, development professionals, youth representatives and other stakeholders. Lastly, Young Bangla remains committed to engage in policy advocacy activities for the youth of Bangladesh with relevant partners and stakeholders. 06 Policy Recommendations Between 4 and 6 September, 2020, Young Bangla organised ve Let’s Talk sessions on a number of topics to facilitate the dialogue on the implementation of the post-COVID19 Youth Development agenda, including youth led response and resilience, education and skills, employment and entrepreneurship, health, sports, art and culture. The recommendations received during the sessions can be summarised as follows: Art and Culture Youth-led Response Formation of a cultural council under the Increase Youth Participation in the National Ministry of Cultural Aaffairs and the Youth Council. Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MoC A). Review and set a “Post COVID19” two years’ Encourage private patrons to come forward agenda for National Youth Action Plan. in supporting cultural activities. Sanction ‘’Challenge Fund’’ under the Ministry Creation of a digital database of youth of Youth and Sports (MoYS) and Ministry of engaged in the creative sector. Social Welfare (MoSW). Decentralization of cultural events. Prepare a National Database of youth organizations and volunteers, accessible to Protection of intellectual property rights. all Bangladeshi citizens. The database will be prepared with support of different Government agencies and the National Youth Council could be the custodian of the database. The National Youth Council can expand its sphere through creating a National Youth Cell under the Prime Minister’s Ofce. 07 Youth-led Response Inclusion of youth into the Revenue Earning Projects: Social Safety Net Management: To include local youth in the social safety net activities such as directing targeted funds to vulnerable people. Local Infrastructure Development: Ensure youth participation in the local projects, such as; ‘Amar Bari, Amar Khamar’, “40 days’ local development project” etc. National Service Program (NSP): ‘Youth Training and Recreation Centre’ in every Upazilas. It can be used as a training centre and a point of mentorship for local youth organizations, an example of ‘Student to Startup’. The model provides a long-term mentorship along with funds. Provision for the collateral free loan for local youth organizations can be added. It needs to be more accessible and popular with the local youth. LGRD has many local projects which can be given to the local youth, such as “Local Water Bodies”, and “Destitute Allowances”. 08 Education and Skill Development The state-owned mobile operator could offer a free internet package to reduce inequality in A health safety and hygiene guideline for attaining remote learning. educational and training institutions needs to be developed and disseminated among the A unied approach should be developed to school authorities, teachers, students, their incorporate all education and training sectors families, and other relevant stakeholders. and harmonize them under a national authority that will be accountable for A proper needs assessment needs to be done standardization, accreditation, and quality to nd the skill gap and reskilling and assurance. upskilling requirement in the COVID19 recovery phase. A comprehensive skills anticipation and labour market information system can be set It is immediate to assess the skills level of the

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