Rationale

COVID-19 induced shutdown has resulted in education disruption and job loss for the young population. The pandemic has decimated the work landscape and has devastated the education system. Psychological stress among young people has heightened due to distancing from sports, socialization, and entertainment. During this pandemic, youth have to adjust to new sets of employability skills, a slow paced economy, extensive health measures, and new learning modes.

This policy talk series offered an inclusive platform for a broad range of stakeholders to emphasize on policy actions that would collectively advance the post-COVID19 youth development agendas. The insights and analysis presented in this policy talk series set a significant cornerstone for the post-COVID19 deliberations and will reinforce the promise of post-COVID19 youth development and transform the lives of youth across the country. Through this project, we can understand what this vast population of youth has to say regarding matters that benefit their welfare in covid situation and also how policy would help them to become more efficient in society.

Objective

To identify and propose the action for youth to deal with challenges related to Post-COVID19 youth development.

Activity Details

The Talk Show was held on 04 September, 2020 via online social media platforms. The talk show consisted of an Inaugural session which was followed by five (5) thematic sessions which culminated in a Plenary session on the agenda of Post Covid19: Youth Development.

In the inaugural plenary Young Bangla presented a framework of youth development integral to post Covid19 recovery plan for the nation. This framework was based on the suggestions and recommendations that were obtained during different consultations and Let’s Talk organized by Young Bangla during the COVID19 pandemic, from March to June 2020. Five (5) parallel sessions (Let’s Talk) were held on the following topics to facilitate the discussion of the implementation of the post-COVID19 Youth Development agenda:

• Youth in Covid19 Recovery
• Covid 19 Recovery: Education & Youth Employability
• Employment & Youth Entrepreneurship
• COVID 19 Recovery Plus: Health, Sports & Youth Wellbeing
• Resilient Youth & Creative Endeavors.

12 Panelists were present in the session of Inaugural Let’s Talk on COVID-19:Youth Development. Where various youth representatives from across the country actively took part in this series. They were Youth leaders, achievers, academics, practitioners, registered youth participants, and policymakers. Penalists talked about the overall youth situation during covid-19. How they are contributing to this pandemic and how different measures were taken concerning them. Ex- BYLC youth training and mental health program etc. how their contributions can be put into strong recognition to encourage them to do more effective and volunteering work for the community.

In the session of youth in Covid-19 Recovery they particularly talked about the problems youth are facing in preventing covid-19. How their situation can be improved in the post covid situation, the health measures, education measures, volunteerism activities, how can they contribute more to the society. In those consultations and the talk show, panelists also talked about education and youth employability situations, opportunities, accessibilities, entrepreneurship, funding, limitations, their health and other recreational , social activities throughout the different sessions.

It created a platform for the youth to share their concern and thoughts of the COVID-19 situations along with their recommendations which will be shared with the policy makers of the country. Panelists also recommended integrated youth-friendly development policies and actions to be taken in the post COVID19 recovery phase.The recommendations were compiled and were shared in the last day session. Based on the vetting, initiatives were taken to combine the government and the policy makers for contributing to an effective change.