Involving youth in development policy research: lessons learned – ODI Project Briefings 56

This 4-page Project Briefing synthesises the findings of a DFID-funded study that examines the impacts of global shocks on youth – primarily in Ghana, Mozambique and Vietnam. Youth and youth voices have, historically, been marginalised from development policy dialogues. The last five years have seen a change, however, with youth gaining greater recognition, as reflected in a number of high profile publications. This increasing attention has been fuelled by a concern about rising youth unemployment and violence, especially amid growing fears about fragile states and religious fundamentalism. Examples of participatory research initiatives with youth in developing countries on development challenges, however, remain limited. This work therefore provides contributions towards understanding the impacts of global shocks on youth cohorts at the local level. It additionally describes how youth can participate meaningfully in the research itself and provide valid data – but also outlines the required time and resource investments needed to address the mentoring and communcations challenges central to youth-based participatory research.