Meaningful and Inclusive Youth Participation
CHOICE’s work on young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and meaningful and inclusive youth participation (MIYP) is based on our core assumption that meaningful and inclusive youth participation in SRHR decision-making, organizations and in all phases of programs and policies at all geographical levels, empowers young people and improves their SRHR reality. The idea that MIYP is beneficial for young people’s SRHR around the world is, however, not the only reason we think MIYP is important. At CHOICE, we believe that MIYP in itself is a human right across all areas (and not just SRHR). Do you want to know more about this? Then read out MIYP Position Paper! This paper serves to outlines CHOICE's vision on MIYP. It contains CHOICE’s definition of MIYP, why we think MIYP is important, what CHOICE does to support MIYP, and, last but not least, what YOU can do to improve MIYP at your organization or in your work.
Download our MIYP position paper!
What is MIYP?
Meaningful and Inclusive Youth Participation (MIYP) means that young people, like you, work in all stages of decision-making in organizations and can participate on equal terms with adults at a number of levels, or alternatively work independently from adults and make decisions solely with the involvement of youth voices. You can learn more about working with adults in the youth adult partnership section. Youth work on many different aspects of an issue - from identifying a problem or opportunity, to the development of a program or policy, to the implementation and evaluation of campaigns concerning young people. For these to be accomplished, mechanisms must be in place that allow young people to have an active role in which their voice is heard and respected. When the participation of young people is truly meaningful, it benefits young people's development, their SRHR AND society as a whole.
Flower of Participation
The Flower of Participation is a model which uses the metaphor of a blooming flower to symbolize the core elements and enabling factors which help MIYP bloom and flourish. It is a useful tool for you to better understand MYP and the different level of meaningful participation. It is a fundamental key to understanding what CHOICE and its partners believe are integral parts to MIYP.
Why do MIYP?
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) states that meaningful youth participation is a fundamental human right. This UN document recognizes the economic, social and cultural rights of children. It is an international treaty, which has been signed by all countries in the world, except for the USA and South-Sudan. There are 42 rights listed under the convention of the rights of the child! Our friends at Plan International created a youth-friendly poster that lists them all. According to this UN Convention, you have the fundamental right to participate and access information related to decision-making processes that affect your life and well-being.
There is clear evidence that MIYP benefits society, has positive effects on YOUR development, strengthens organizational capacity and is key to achieving Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) program outcomes. YOU(TH) can and should be involved on different levels of the decision-making process, in this case specifically involving SRHRs; this can be on a local level, within your family, at school, in your community or at work. You can also be engaged in making decisions on a regional or national level or on a national or international youth council. You not only have the fundamental right to meaningfully participate, but there is also a great advantage to your involvement. If your voice is heard, programs and policies can be adapted to reflect the actual needs of young people and can become more effective. You can learn about these aspects of MIYP and how to act upon them in the civic participation, movement building and dealing with turnover.
Meaningful and inclusive youth participation empowers you to become a leader. Ultimately MIYP contributes to your personal development in becoming a more confident, skilled, connected and empowered young person who is an active agent of change in your communities. Reading through and learning from these resources will teach you about the core aspects of MYP and how you can use it to create important change on achieving SRHRs for youth like you and me!