From Voices to Action: Building a Youth Voice Mechanism in Bangladesh

Across Bangladesh, young people are eager to contribute to decisions that shape their lives and communities. Yet many – especially those from marginalized groups –are trying to find trusted, and effective ways to make their voices heard. To help address this, the UNESCO led the coordination of a nationwide effort to explore how youth participation can be strengthened and formally built into public decision‑making. Working with UN agencies, national consultants, and the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS), UNESCO ensured that the process remained inclusive, coherent and aligned with national priorities.

UNESCO stands with young people across Bangladesh to ensure their voices are not only heard, but built into the decisions that shape their lives. Working with national partners and the UN system, we are helping move from one-off consultations to lasting mechanisms that make participation inclusive and meaningful. Our commitment is clear: youth engagement must be part of how public decisions are made, not an exception to it.

Khaled El-Enany

UNESCO Director-General

A national youth survey, five regional workshops, and 14 focus group discussions brought together young people from all eight regions of Bangladesh. Rather than being asked simply to answer questions, they joined a co‑design process facilitated by UNESCO, helping to shape the proposed Youth Voice Mechanism (YVM). Particular efforts were made to include youth from ethnic minorities, tea‑estate workers, slum youth, young women, persons with disabilities, and gender‑diverse youth –ensuring that those who are usually left out were central to the discussion. UNESCO staff were present throughout consultations and focus group discussions, engaging directly and first‑hand with participants and helping to create spaces where sensitive issues could be shared openly.

This is the first time we were invited not just to talk about problems, but to design solutions together.

Youth participant, Sylhet

The overarching aim was to develop a structured and long-term approach that ensures young people have a real say in decision-making processes. UNESCO supported the mapping of existing levels of youth participation, trust, and institutional responsiveness, while helping identify the social and structural barriers that continue to affect marginalized groups. The emerging Youth Voice Mechanism (YVM) model is rooted in evidence generated directly by young people and informed by international good practices, with strong attention to gender, accessibility, and accountability.

The resulting YVM framework offers a practical way for young people to raise concerns related to livelihoods, safety, public services and dignity, and to channel them into formal decision‑making systems. Over time, a mechanism like this has the potential to reduce the need for crisis‑driven protests and encourage more continuous, constructive engagement between youth and state institutions

Looking ahead, the next phase will involve piloting the Youth Voice Mechanism in different geographic and social contexts, testing how well it supports inclusivity, safety and responsiveness in real governance settings. As the mechanism develops, UNESCO’s leadership will remain central in ensuring that youth perspectives are systematically integrated into policy planning, service delivery, and accountability processes.