The 2020 Global Youth Development Index reveals that the conditions of young people have improved around the world by 3.1 per cent between 2010 and 2018, but the progress remains slow.

The Commonwealth Secretariat released its triennial rankings of youth development in 181 countries, with 156 of them recording at least slight improvements in their scores.

India is ranked 122nd on the Global Youth Development Index.

Global Youth Development Index

• The YDI is a resource for researchers, policy-makers and civil society, including young people, to track progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) associated with youth development. 

• This is a process that enhances the status of young people, empowering them to build on their competences and capabilities for life and enabling them to contribute and benefit from a politically stable, economically viable and legally supportive environment, ensuring their full participation as active citizens in their countries.

• The index ranks countries between 0.00 (lowest) and 1.00 (highest) according to the developments in youth education, employment, health, equality and inclusion, peace and security, and political and civic participation. 

• It looks at 27 indicators including literacy and voting to showcase the state of the world’s 1.8 billion people between the age of 15 and 29.

Performance of countries

• Singapore ranked top for the first time followed by Slovenia, Norway, Malta and Denmark. Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Afghanistan and Niger came last respectively.

• Countries with the largest improvement in YDI  score between 2010 and 2018 are referred to as the largest risers. On the 2020 YDI, the top five risers are Afghanistan, India, Russia, Ethiopia and Burkina Faso. Afghanistan improved its YDI score 19.9 per cent and India improved by 18.7 per cent.

• On the other hand, Syria, Ukraine, Libya, Jordan and Lebanon showed the greatest decline in youth development between 2010 and 2018.

Highlights of the index

Overall, the index shows advances in youth’s participation in peace processes and their education, employment, inclusion and health care since 2010.  

However, youth participation in politics is the only domain to record a decline in most parts of the world, reporting a deterioration in 102 countries.

Health and Wellbeing

The Health and Wellbeing domain recorded the largest improvement, at 4.39 per cent. Worldwide, 148 countries improved in Health and Wellbeing, while 33 deteriorated. Russia had the largest improvement, with its domain score increasing by 38.8 per cent from 2010 to 2018. Syria had the largest deterioration globally, at 40.5 per cent over the period.

Education

Globally, the Education domain improved 3 per cent from 2010 to 2018, driven by a 5.3 per cent improvement in school completion, indicating that more young people around the world are completing a basic education. The global average score for the literacy rate indicator also improved, by 2.4 per cent over the decade. Two-thirds of countries worldwide showed an improvement in this domain, led by Burkina Faso, Afghanistan, Burundi, Bangladesh and Laos.

Employment and Opportunity

The Employment and Opportunity domain recorded an average improvement from 2010 to 2018, of just over 3 per cent. Worldwide, 145 countries improved, while 36 deteriorated. Peru had the largest improvement, followed by Vietnam, Malawi, Indonesia and Nicaragua. Laos had the largest deterioration.

Equality and Inclusion

The Equality and Inclusion domain improved nearly 2 per cent from 2010 to 2018, driven by a 5.71 per cent improvement in the score for economic marginalisation. Improvements in economic marginalisation mean that more youth are being pulled out of extreme poverty and thus have improved opportunities for economic security and inclusion. 

Gains were also made in gender equality, with a 2.13 per cent improvement toward gender parity in literacy, as the global average score rose from 0.94 out of 1 in 2010 to 0.96 in 2018.

Gender parity in safety and security was more or less flat over the decade, with significantly more young men around the world reporting that they felt safe in their communities than young women did.

Worldwide, 135 countries improved in Equality and Inclusion, while 46 deteriorated, resulting in an average improvement in every region. Egypt had the largest improvement globally, followed by Afghanistan, Qatar, India and Guinea. Yemen had the largest deterioration. 

Political and Civic Participation

Political and Civic Participation was the only domain in the 2020 YDI to show an average deterioration over the past decade. Worldwide, 102 countries deteriorated while 79 improved. North America posted the greatest regional average decline in Political and Civic Participation, at 17 per cent. Both countries in North America – Canada and the USA – deteriorated over the decade, at 26 and 12 per cent, respectively. Madagascar had the largest improvement, followed by Kenya, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) and Comoros.

Peace and Security

The Peace and Security domain recorded the second largest improvement of any domain on the 2020 YDI, with the average domain score increasing by 3.41 per cent from 2010 to 2018. Somalia had the largest improvement globally, followed by Colombia, Sri Lanka, Eritrea and Russia – all countries that emerged from armed conflicts over the decade. Libya had the largest deterioration, followed by Ukraine, Syria, Burkina Faso and Cameroon.

What is the Commonwealth?

• The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 independent and equal countries.

• It is home to 2.4 billion people, and includes both advanced economies and developing countries. As many as 32 of its members are small States, including many island nations.

• The member States have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace.

• The Commonwealth’s roots go back to the British Empire. But today any country can join the modern Commonwealth. The last country to join the Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.

• The Commonwealth is often described as a ‘family’ of nations. At the heart of this family are three intergovernmental organisations:

• The Commonwealth Secretariat works with member governments to deliver on priorities agreed by Commonwealth Heads of government and promotes international consensus building. It provides technical assistance and advisory services to members, helping governments achieve sustainable, inclusive and equitable development. The Secretariat’s work programme encompasses areas such as democracy, rule of law, human rights, governance and social and economic development.

• The Commonwealth Foundation supports people's participation in democracy and development.

• The Commonwealth of Learning promotes open learning and distance education.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store