Young people must shape post-2030 education agenda – UNESCO youth leader

A Global Youth Leader on UNESCO’s SDG 4 High-Level Steering Committee, Blessing Dada, has called for young people to be recognised as equal partners in shaping education policies beyond 2030, saying the future of education depends on their meaningful participation in decision-making.

Dada made the call in a statement on Friday after representing the SDG 4 Youth & Student Network at UNESCO’s Transforming Education Summit +4 and the SDG 4 High-Level Steering Committee Leaders’ Meeting held in Paris, France.

According to him, governments must move beyond merely consulting young people but involve them in designing, implementing and monitoring education policies.

“The future of education will not be shaped only by the policies we adopt, but by the people we choose to include in shaping them,” he said.

Reflecting on his personal journey, Dada recalled spending two years out of school while growing up in a rural area of Ekiti State because his family could not afford his education.

He said the experience made representing millions of young people before world leaders at UNESCO Headquarters a defining moment in his life.

“Education is more than a pathway out of poverty; it is a bridge to opportunity, dignity and leadership,” he said.

Dada explained that discussions at the summit focused on reviewing progress made since the 2022 Transforming Education Summit while laying the foundation for the global education agenda beyond the Sustainable Development Goals deadline of 2030.

He noted that one of the major outcomes of the meeting was the growing recognition of young people as partners, rather than observers, in global education governance.

According to him, consultations organised by the SDG 4 Youth & Student Network with young people across different regions produced three key priorities for the future of education.

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The first, he said, is greater investment in teachers through improved recruitment, equitable deployment, continuous professional development and better support systems.

He noted that teacher shortages continued to undermine learning outcomes worldwide.

The second priority, according to Dada, is strengthening foundational and lifelong learning by ensuring learners acquire literacy, numeracy, critical thinking and adaptable skills while making education systems resilient enough to withstand poverty, conflict, displacement and climate-related disruptions.

He also called for accelerated digital transformation, saying technology and artificial intelligence should be deployed to expand access to quality education without widening inequality.

According to him, governments should invest in affordable internet connectivity, digital infrastructure and ethical governance of artificial intelligence while ensuring rural communities and learners with disabilities are not excluded.

Dada identified sustainable financing, climate resilience, gender equality and youth participation as cross-cutting issues that must remain central to education reforms.

He said the conversations in Paris were particularly relevant to Nigeria, which continued to grapple with millions of out-of-school children, teacher shortages, learning poverty, digital exclusion and insecurity.

“Our consultations showed that young people are no longer asking for a seat at the table; we are helping shape the table,” he said.

Dada stressed that meaningful youth participation should extend beyond speaking at conferences to creating permanent structures where young people contribute to education policy formulation and accountability.

Drawing from his work with underserved communities through the Slum & Rural Aid for African Child Development Initiative, he said lasting solutions emerged when those most affected by education challenges were involved in designing them.