After
two days of deliberations at the 2026 Commonwealth Youth
Forum, a vibrant, committed group of more than 300 young
leaders from five Commonwealth regions delivered strong
recommendations prioritising investment and long-term
partnerships for shared prosperity.
The 14th
CYF Youth Policy Document outlines young people’s
shared priorities for Commonwealth Heads of Government,
provides a practical guide for continued advocacy and
delivery, and serves as a benchmark for measuring
progress.
Key recommendations
include:
- Giving young people meaningful roles in
decisions, protecting civic space and publishing how
institutions respond to their proposals. - Connecting
learning to paid, safe and decent work; widening fair routes
to enterprise, finance and sustainable
livelihoods. - Including youth in climate decisions
and strengthening locally led adaptation - Improving
access to mental-health and other essential services, with
attention to barriers faced by underrepresented
groups. - Expanding meaningful digital access and
skills, supporting responsible innovation and protecting
rights, privacy and safety.
Advertisement – scroll to continue reading
The policy document
reflects a participatory and youth-led process: ideas were
first gathered through a pre-consultation and then tested in
plenaries and workshops to ensure the document reflected the
Commonwealth’s five regions while preserving the urgency of
young people’s lived realities.
Commonwealth
Deputy Secretary-General, Tania Baumann, said the
young people spoke powerfully about the change they wanted
to see. Speaking directly to the young leaders, she
said:
“Together, you have developed a powerful set
of recommendations that speak directly to the
Commonwealth’s future. And be in no doubt: we have heard
you. Your outcome document will inform CHOGM discussions and
ensure that Heads of Government know what young people
across the Commonwealth want. The Commonwealth Secretariat
will also carry your recommendations into our own
work.
“I thank the Government and people of Antigua
and Barbuda for their warm hospitality and for hosting the
Commonwealth Youth Forum alongside CHOGM.”
A
celebration of culture, creativity and
partnership
The closing ceremony was as vibrant as
the voices of the youth who expressed their views across the
three-day Forum held alongside the biannual
Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
Musical performances celebrated Antigua’s colour, rhythm
and vivid cultural traditions, with creativity transforming
the room into a tapestry of diversity.
Setting the
tone, a young musician from Antigua and Barbuda,
Annia Mathews, performed a moving song on the
guitar, celebrating hope, resilience, and the voice of youth
in the Commonwealth.
Highlights of the day included
awards to the top performers in the Innovation Skills
Challenge across six categories: technology, finance,
advocacy, entrepreneurship, the creative economy, and
education and power. Each winner received an environmentally
friendly trophy, designed by Stanley Anigbogu,
the 2025
Commonwealth Young Person of the Year,
to symbolise youth innovation.
One message
cut through with urgency: young people cannot be invited to
decisions only after priorities have been set.
With
communities facing unequal access to education, digital
disruption and social exclusion, Taskforce members called
for youth agency to be embedded in policy design,
implementation and accountability.
For the national
youth delegates, youth agency means more than being heard.
It means “having the power, resources, knowledge and
platforms to shape decisions, test solutions and lead
change.”
Other participants urged institutions to
replace symbolic youth consultation with ongoing
participation and shared leadership.
Youth-led
organisations and innovators called for accessible, flexible
and sustained funding—not only short-term project grants,
but investment that builds institutions, strengthens
governance and helps promising ideas
grow.
Prof. Colin Riordan, Secretary-General
and Chief Executive of the Association of Commonwealth
Universities, said:
“Too many young people
are still held back from education by cost, distance or
circumstance. The ambition shown at this Forum is a reminder
of what is possible when that potential is unlocked.
Universities have a vital role to play – widening access,
building skills and creating pathways for young people to
turn their ideas into lasting change.”
Building on 50
years of youth development
The Forum was organised in
partnership with the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, the
Commonwealth Secretariat, the Commonwealth Youth Council and
the International Taskforce of young leaders.
It
builds on more than 50 years of Commonwealth work with and
for young people through the Commonwealth
Youth Programme. Its newly endorsed Strategic Framework
2026–2030 provides a stronger foundation to increase the
impact of youth work and embed youth development, leadership
and participation across the Commonwealth Secretariat’s
strategic pillars.
Notes:
- The
Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 56 independent
and equal sovereign states. Our combined population is 2.7
billion, of which more than 60 per cent is aged 29 or
under. - The Commonwealth spans the globe and includes
both advanced economies and developing countries.
Thirty-three of our members are small states, many of which
are island nations. - The Commonwealth Secretariat
supports member countries to build democratic and inclusive
institutions, strengthen governance and promote justice and
human rights. Our work helps to grow economies and boost
trade, deliver national resilience, empower young people,
and address threats such as climate change, debt and
inequality. - Member countries are supported by a
network of more than 80 intergovernmental, civil society,
cultural and professional
organisations.
