South Pacific Regional Youth Caucus

The Commonwealth Youth Programme's South Pacific Regional Youth Caucus (RYC) advocate for action on youth issues at a national and regional level. They also work to have youth voices included in decision-making processes at national, regional and international levels. Over the next two years CYP South Pacific's RYC will work together to convince other leaders that they need to address issues such as unemployment, HIV and AIDS, other sexual health issues, education, health, urban drift and youth participation in decision-making in the Pacific region – and give young people a part to play overcoming those issues. CYP South Pacific's Regional Youth Caucus is also next in line to lead the Pan-Commonwealth Youth Caucus for the next four years.

Pacific Youth Environment Network

The Pacific Youth Environment Network (PYEN) was formed in 1999. It is a network of young environmentalists (16-30 years old) from the South Pacific region who are actively involved in environment, sustainable development and youth projects in their own countries and further abroad. The group exists to facilitate communication, collaboration and cooperation between the young people of the region. In 2001, the first Pacific Youth Caucus on the Environment was held at the University of Wollongong in Australia with 25 delegates attending from 12 Pacific Island countries.

Unfortuntely PYEN does not appear to have its own dedicated website and there is not much information available on the internet. If anyone has up-to-date information regarding current PYEN activities, membership and copntact details we would love to hear from you.

Commonwealth Youth Programme Pacific Centre

The Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) is an international development agency that is dedicated to empowering young people (aged 15-29) in its member countries. The Commonwealth Youth Programme Pacific Centre is located in Honiara, Solomon Islands and is one of four Centres established to serve the member countries of the Commonwealth. The Pacific Centre responds to youth development for 14 countries, small states and territories of the Commonwealth. These 14 countries together have a total population of 31,082,298 million people.

Afu Leah Billy is currently the regional director of CYPPC.

The Commonwealth Plan of Action for Youth Empowerment 2007-2015 is the Commonwealth's guiding strategy to support youth empowerment and participation. Download here.

Human Development Programme SPC

SPC's Human Development Programme (HDP) has a particular focus on bringing gender, youth, culture and community education to the forefront of development. The programme aims to nurture an all-inclusive approach across all sectors to maximise the development potential of the entire community and help people achieve a better quality of life.

Rose Maebiru is the Youth Adviser within the HDP. The youth section of the HDP website has an excellent collection of documents and links related to youth issues in the Pacific.

French Polynesia Union for Youth

In 2008 the French Polnesia Union for Youth (FPUY) celbrates its 30th birthday. Exclusively made up of non-governmental associations from French Polynesia, the FPUY today has a membership of 79 federations and associations representing over 40,000 youths.

FPUY has a website in French and English.

Additional background information regarding the activities of the FPUY, and youth issues in French Polynesia, can be found here.

Pacific Youth Council (PYC)

The Pacific Youth Council (PYC) is a regional, non-governmental, voluntary association of Territorial and national youth organisations established in 1996. It aims to encourage, support and strengthen territorial and national youth organisations and to promote a regional identity for Pacific youth. The PYC is very well placed as a representative body for Pacific youth as it has membership from 22 Pacific island countries and territories that cover all the geographical and political sub-regions of the Pacific. The current president of the PYC is Jacque Sekoula Koroivulaono.

Read more about the role of the Pacific Youth Council here.