The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka in New York co-hosted the 20th session of the ‘Summer Youth Assembly’ along with the Permanent Missions of Kenya and Portugal, in collaboration with the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation.
The opening ceremony was held on August 9 in the General Assembly Hall at the UN Headquarters. The sessions continued with panel discussions, workshops and interactive events until August 12 under the theme “Society for all: Equity and Inclusion for a Sustainable Future.” The opening ceremony was attended by over 800 youth delegates from over 110 countries.
Sri Lankan Permanent Representative Dr. Rohan Perera addressing the opening segment of the assembly, said inclusion becomes more meaningful if it is based on equity, which is central to development. These factors go in tandem and become key aspects for building a strong and healthy society, he said.
He underlined the urgent need to focus on education, especially in the form of skills development and innovation to address the realities of the evolving world. Dr. Perera said the Sri Lankan government recognised the challenges youth have to face in society, and launched programmes to address many concerns of youth to achieve inclusive and sustainable society.
General Assembly President Peter Thomsen said 65 of the 169 targets of the Sustainable Development Goals are focused on empowering and enabling youth.