2024 engagements

The first thematic Youth Assembly consultation took place virtually on 8 October 2024. The session focused on three key topics within WASAG: the role of youth in WASAG governance, sustainable water use in agriculture and ecosystem-based solutions. It was organized in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Land and Water Division, the World Youth Parliament for Water and the Water Youth Network. The consultation focused on empowering youth engagement in water governance, aligning with WASAG to feed into the Rome Water Dialogue.

The discussions began with introductory remarks from FAO representatives and youth contributors. At the end of the session, a survey was shared to gather more inputs for the zero draft.

Key youth priorities that emerged from this engagement included:

• strengthening the full, meaningful and effective participation of youth, women, Indigenous Peoples and farmers, at all levels of decision-making and operation of WASAG - at local, national, regional and international level with concrete measures;
• supporting capacity building, mentorship and training in all WASAG working areas, in particular sustainable water management and governance, promoting intergenerational learning;
• ensuring equitable access to financial and technical resources needed to support the scaling-up of youth innovations and pilot projects in sustainable agricultural water management;
• promoting Integrated Water Resources Management and ecosystem-based solutions that address biodiversity conservation/restoration, water preservation into sustainable, climate-smart, blue, green and gray water management practices; and
• fostering collaboration across sectors between water, agriculture and climate communities, considering public and private actors, to address the complexities of water scarcity and agrifood systems.

Tentative 2025–2026 engagements

The engagements for 2025 include a capacity development workshop in collaboration with FAO Technical Divisions to disseminate information and develop capacity in relation to WASAG working areas. This will be followed by a Youth Assembly session and participation in the 2025 World Water Week, feeding into Rome Water Dialogue during the 2025 World Food Forum flagship event, where youth recommendations collected from consultations will be presented.

In the lead up to the 3rd WASAG International Forum, 2026 UN Water Conference and 2027 World Water Forum, Youth Assembly sessions and consultations will be conducted to gather youth priorities and recommendations to be present during the conference and forum.