SHAPING THE FUTURE HOW CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS CAN POWER HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

BOX 3.12:
Partnering with youth in public service delivery in the Philippines
One key concern for youth is quality public service
delivery. The Philippines’ well-known Check My
School programme mobilizes youth volunteers to
monitor and report on the resources and facilities
of public schools in their local communities. Volunteers
work with school administrations to collect
a wide range of data, including on the number of
teaching and non-teaching staff, instructional materials,
computers, budgets and school donations.
This information is stored in a publicly accessible
database, increasing transparency and accountability.
It also helps in planning and policy making,
and in ascertaining school needs. Young Filipinos
bring IT and data management skills to the programme,
and manage the data platform through
a web portal.
Two factors underpin the programme’s effectiveness.
First, the networks of the Affiliated Network
for Social Accountability in East Asia and the
Pacific (ANSA-EAP) and the Ateneo School of
Government are used to mobilize youth from civil
society organizations and youth groups, as well
as socially active individuals. Youth who sign up
are given leadership and other forms of training.
Second, a significant degree of trust is created by
providing youth with access to public documents
about educational resources and procurement processes.
A Memorandum of Agreement between the
Department of Education and ANSA-EAP ensures
that partners have access to all of the department’s
public data, and establishes relationships with local
school authorities. This facilitates data collection,
but it also demonstrates political commitment to a
cooperative relationship between the Government
and youth.
Launched in 2011, the programme has been so
successful that it has attracted the attention of
civil society organizations, international donors
and other countries, including Indonesia, Kenya
and Moldova, which have expressed interest in
adopting the model.
Youth offer unique
perspectives; their
involvement in policymaking
should increase
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Sources: Check my school 2016, World Bank 2012.
Kibera project, local youth gathered the voices
of poor community members living in Kenya’s
largest slum. They mapped service provision by
collecting data from businesses, health centres,
clinics and schools, information that allowed
numerous non-governmental organizations
and government entities working in the areas
to better plan and coordinate their interventions.
In India, young people from labourers’ families
were trained to conduct a social audit of
the National Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme, a large public programme. The young
auditors raised specific concerns about financial
discrepancies, which led to the recovery of 19
million Indian rupees. The Check My School
project in the Philippines is another example
(Box 3.12).
Bring youth into policy dialogues, especially on
issues that affect them most. There is growing
consensus that youth can help catalyse better
governance overall, with countries increasingly
engaging with them on key national topics.
About half of Asia-Pacific countries have adopted
national youth policies. More youth are also active
in international dialogues, including around
Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development
Goals. International forums discuss integrating
youth into mainstream decision-making, such
as at the 2014 World Conference on Youth in
Sri Lanka, which brought together governments,
civil society, academia and youth organizations
from over 30 countries.
Youth involvement in public policy-making
should increase, particularly in areas where young
people are profoundly affected by the choices
being made. One priority issue is migration,
since in many countries, youth constitute the
major group migrating for work. Those seeking
low-skilled employment abroad face a host of
challenges related to their rights and well-being.
Youth should be involved in shaping policies and
mechanisms that can safeguard their rights and
safety. Similar issues apply to labour standards
within countries, where young people make up a
large share of workers in factories, the informal
sector and various low-wage occupations.