The 2026 Youth Report: Lead with Youth was published by the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report (GEM Report) in partnership with the United Nations Youth Office and launched on 23 January 2026 for the International Day of Education. The report examines how youth and student organizations are involved in education decision-making worldwide. It provides the first global baseline on youth participation in education legislation and policymaking, showing that although many countries consult young people, their influence on final decisions often remains limited.
Key insights:
The report responds to the 2022 Youth Declaration of the Transforming Education Summit, which recognized young people as active agents of long-term education reform.
It introduces a first attempt to measure youth and student participation in education decision-making globally.
Only one in three countries have formal bodies to engage youth or students in education discussions.
Around three in four countries have consultation processes for youth or students, but consultation does not always mean real influence.
The report highlights a major gap between being consulted and being able to shape final education policies.
It maps more than 500 national youth and student organizations involved in education decision-making worldwide.
