With half of the global population now under the age of 30, the question of how to involve younger adults in global health decision-making is becoming increasingly urgent. In the latest episode of the Global Health Matters podcast, Dr. Garry Aslanyan invites three young leaders to discuss the role of youth in shaping health-related policies and strategies for today and the future.

The three guests are Inês Costa Louro, Aloyce Urassa, and Hamaiyal Sana.

Louro is a first-year medical doctor from Portugal and serves as vice president for external affairs of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations.

Urassa is a public health scientist from Tanzania and the chairperson of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance Youth Advisory Council. Sana is a Pakistani medical doctor and vice chair of the World Health Organization’s Youth Council.

“I do believe we are the leaders of the future, and in a few years, we will be leading our countries,” Louro said. “We will be the voices in global health, not just the young voices.”

However, she noted that her generation is often seen as a group that can provide input on future challenges but is not always included in addressing current ones.

“I do believe that there needs to be a shift,” Louro emphasized. “I think a small shift could be to actually start participating and collaborating in capacity building and building resources together—not just showing us different resources that are not always adequate for the generation at hand. There are things that are already happening within some big organizations that I think are the key to youth engagement.

“Start valuing what we can bring to the table because a lot of us are actually researchers,” she continued, explaining that young people should be recognized not only for their voices but also as fellow experts.

Still, challenges to youth involvement persist, with funding being a major obstacle. According to Urassa, support is essential to ensure meaningful participation from diverse youth.

“You cannot just tell young people, ‘we are encouraging you to participate,’ while there is no clear mechanism on how they will participate,” Urassa said. He added, “There should be local promotion of these opportunities because most of them are promoted through high-level platforms or social media, where some of the youth who are most affected might not have access.”

Funding and visa issues are specific barriers that often prevent many young people from participating.

“If a big organization like WHO or a UN entity actually takes proactive steps on these issues, a lot of visas could be awarded to young people who would otherwise not be able to travel, attend conferences, or participate in other events,” Louro said. “That should be the first and foremost step toward equity, inclusion, and diversity.”

Young people’s digital expertise is another key factor in their potential contribution to global health. Louro highlighted this as one of the most relevant points.

“We live in a world where not only the future but also the present is digital. We live in a digital world,” she said. “Who better to navigate us in this digital world than us? Our generation. We are digital natives. We need to help navigate this digital transformation of health and the digital transformation of the world.

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Image Credits: Global Health Matters/TDR.