Decision-makers were encouraged yesterday to involve youths and children in climate policy formation and action at the opening of a three-day Advocacy and Youth Forum, at the Pegasus Hotel, Kingston, Georgetown.
The three-day forum is being hosted by the Rights of the Child Commission (RCC) in collaboration with UNICEF Guyana in observation of International Youth Day 2023.
Delivering remarks at the opening ceremony was Area Representative of UNICEF, Nicolas Pron, who said that the forum seeks to train over 150 young people from across Guyana in the thematic areas and in advocacy.
A UNICEF Guyana release said that Pron explained that the forum comes at a pivotal time when UNICEF Guyana is preparing for a few international conferences like Conference of the Parties (COP) 28 in Dubai and the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in Antigua, among others.
He noted that while children and young people are faced with many disasters, humanitarian crises and the ever-growing impacts of climate change, there are interventions that can be considered to mitigate such impacts.
He further encouraged decisionmakers in Guyana to include children and youth in the processes for designing and implementing climate policy and action and consider including young representatives in the national delegations to these conferences.
