Giving Compass' Take:

• The Youth Progress Index for 2017 reveals a concerning trend: for the first time ever, young people are likely to be worse off than their parents. This report outlines how young people across the world are at risk, identifying opportunities to make an impact.

• What are the most pressing issues that youth face? How can philanthropy best serve young people to make an impact? 

• Learn how youth are making an impact on society.

The Youth Progress Index complements other leading global efforts such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which promotes a more holistic approach to progress and its measurement. All 17 Sustainable Development Goals are covered to a certain extent, and most of the 169 targets are covered in this one simple framework.

Young people are facing incredible challenges and threats to their wellbeing. For the first time ever, they are at risk of being worse off than their parents.

The Youth Progress Index scores and ranks 102 countries on three dimensions—Basic Human Needs, Foundations of Wellbeing and Ppportunity—and twelve components. The results are calculated using 60 indicators of social and environmental performance specific to the youth population. The index provides a country-by-country picture of a young person’s access to education, healthcare, housing, quality of jobs, civic and political participation and environmental sustainability.

In short:

  • Norway is the highest scoring country overall.
  • The highest scores in the respective dimensions are achieved by Switzerland (Basic Human Needs), Denmark (Foundations of Wellbeing), and Finland (Opportunity).
  • EU countries perform more uniformly compared to the rest of the world. The 26 EU countries rank within the first 41 positions in the rankings.
  • At the other end of the spectrum, for countries with sufficient available data to be included in the Youth Progress Index, Mozambique ranks last overall.
  • The Central African Republic takes last place in Basic Human Needs and Foundations of Wellbeing dimensions, while Guinea scores the lowest in the Opportunity dimension.

By not including economic indicators, the Youth Progress Index also allows for an independent assessment of the relationship between economic performance and youth progress in a specific country. This approach helps identify patterns and relationships that can help understand the effects of economic activity on young people’s lives and guide policy priorities and implementation.

Read the full article about the Youth Progress Index by at Social Progress Imperative.