Youth Political Participation Programming Guide - NDI

The Youth Political Participation Programming Guide is designed to help democracy and governance practitioners work more effectively to support the political inclusion of young women and men. The guide distills the findings of a recent NDI study that included a review of contemporary literature on youth development, an examination of NDI youth programs, and discussions with other democracy and governance assistance organizations. Most importantly, the study involved a series of consultations with young political leaders and activists from four continents on their political challenges and assistance needs. This ensured that the guide was grounded in the real-life experiences of young people themselves.
 
The centerpiece of the guide is a refined theory of change for youth political participation, which unifies the different factors that combine to increase meaningful, sustained youth political participation. The guide unpacks the theory and lays out lessons for how it can be operationalized in a program, highlighting examples of NDI programs in Jordan and Kosovo.