Introduction Young people between the age of 15–24 make up 1.2 billion of the world’s total population, with over 60% of the world’s total youth population resident in Asia and the Pacific.[1] Despite being a demographic majority in the region, young people’s voices are often excluded from development policy and financing dialogue, with age-based discrimination and traditional norms limiting young people’s meaningful participation. With none of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on track to be achieved by 2030, there is an urgent need to try new modes of partnership and engage differently and more deeply with diverse stakeholders to catalyze development goals. This imperative is articulated by the ADB’s Strategy 2030 Midterm Review: An Evolution Approach for the Asian Development Bank. Engaging Young People in Development Financing Although young people’s participation in multilateral forums has increased over the past decade, youth continue to exert little influence over decision-making in sustainable development, particularly in financing for development decision-making spaces. This can be attributed to: a lack of mechanisms for international financial institutions to engage directly with young people outside of formal and structured policy and project consultation processes a lack of coordination and knowledge sharing between international financial institutions on what works to work effectively with young people by embedding meaningful youth engagement in operations, policy dialogue, and knowledge solutions. As a first step toward overcoming these barriers and laying the groundwork for more effective partnerships to deliver the SDGs, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Islamic Development Bank co-convened the International Youth Day 2025 Celebration: MDB Engagement Dialogue on Local Youth Actions for the Sustainable Development Goals and Beyond. Multilateral development banks (MDBs) represented at the online gathering of youth empowerment and youth engagement technical leads held on 20 August 2025 included the African Development Bank, ADB, Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Islamic Development Bank, and the World Bank Group. The dialogue partnered with child and girl rights organization Plan International to bring the voices of youth advocates Jerry the Nalley from Indonesia and Mariam Samai from Sierra Leone directly to the gathering, providing a platform for young people to engage directly in dialogue with MDBs on the most pressing social and economic development issues facing youth today. Localizing the SDGs through Youth Leadership Observed annually on August 12, International Youth Day seeks to raise awareness of the challenges facing youth from around the world, highlight their unique contributions to society, and promote young people’s meaningful engagement in development policy and financing. The 2025 theme “Local Youth Actions for the SDGs and Beyond” recognizes that young people play a transformative role in translating global SDGs into local realities. Localization has emerged as a defining strategy for accelerating SDG progress, with youth-led initiatives playing a catalytic role. From climate adaptation projects in rural communities to digital innovation hubs in urban centers, young people are demonstrating that solutions to global challenges often begin at the grassroots. United Nations Development Programme guidance and evaluation syntheses demonstrate that structured engagement of young people and local stakeholders produces more locally owned and responsive interventions, compared with top-down design approaches. Youth-Led Insights for MDBs The MDB Engagement Dialogue revealed three key insights: There is an urgent need for quality green and digital jobs for youth. Significant challenges facing young people today include low digital literacy, limited formal education, and inability to access regular employment and quality jobs. Youth advocates stressed the importance of job creation and enabling youth entrepreneurship, with a focus on the inclusion of marginalized youth. MDBs can enable youth-led localized development and develop fit-for-purpose engagement mechanisms for young people. Youth advocate Mariam Samai emphasized the importance of reaching the local level through a whole-of-society approach that empowers youth. To enable greater participation she suggested the establishment of a youth advisory structures. Meanwhile, Jerry Nalley proposed the meaningful engagement of young people through co-creation of projects. Young people face significant challenges in localizing the SDGs and MDBs can ensure that financing reaches the local level. Limited access to finance for grassroots youth initiatives hinders localization and greater impact. Youth advocate Mariam Samai suggested the development or scaling up of mechanisms to channel resources directly to young people in line with national development priorities. Jerry Nalley also highlighted the need to entrust young people with resources as delivery partners. Way Forward Building partnerships that connect grassroots work to institutional levers of change is important to youth advocates and youth-led organizations. Strengthening their capacity in policy advocacy, project management, and evidence generation will enhance their ability to influence MDB agendas and secure resources. MDBs can operationalize youth empowerment by establishing a standing coordination platform across MDBs on youth engagement, including a mechanism to regularly engage the voices of youth from the grassroots level; prioritizing participatory and empowering engagement methods, such as meaningful youth engagement, in high priority sectors for young people, including education, quality jobs, and digital transformation; and in pertinent sector, mainstreaming meaningful youth engagement across the project lifecycle, with a particular focus on exploring the role of young people in monitoring and evaluation. The dialogue also emphasized the importance of partnerships between youth organizations, civil society, governments, and the private sector. MDBs can act as conveners, channeling resources and aligning policy frameworks to amplify youth-led impact. If sustained, the relationships and ideas sparked at the MDBs Engagement Dialogue will serve as a foundation for a more coherent, collaborative, and impactful approach among international financial institutions to youth engagement in development. [1] UNESCAP. Regional Overview: Youth in Asia and the Pacific. Resources A. Usov. 2023. EBRD Provides Footing for Youth-led Businesses in Central Asia. European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. African Development Bank Group. 2025. World Youth Skills Day: African Development Bank to Introduce Systems Reforms to Prioritize Investing in Africa’s Youth. News Release. 15 July. Asian Development Bank. 2014. ADB Civil Society Approach: An Operational Approach to Enhanced Engagement, 2025–2030. Asian Development Bank. Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Civil Society Engagement. International Finance Corporation. International Youth Day. Islamic Development Bank. 2019. The IsDB Youth Development Strategy 2020–2025. S. Sultan, S. Espinoza, and S. Hellali. 2025. Change-Makers: Empowering Youth for Inclusive Societies. World Bank Group. World Bank Group. 2015. Youth Summit 2025: New Horizons: Youth-Led Innovation for a Livable Planet. Ask the Experts Alanna Jayne Inserra Senior Social Development Specialist, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank Alanna Jayne Inserra is with ADB’s Fragility and Engagement Division, seconded from Plan International. She leads the ADB's institutional work on meaningful youth engagement to support more inclusive, innovative and sustainable development financing. Sharia Walker Senior Youth Development Specialist, Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Sharia Walker works closely with IsDB Member Countries to contribute to policy dialogue to understand and address youth issues, concerns, and aspirations. Erika Joan Meñez Youth Engagement Consultant, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank Erika Joan Meñez supports ADB’s efforts to institutionalize meaningful youth engagement and amplify youth voices in ADB operations and policy dialogues. Leave your question or comment in the section below: View the discussion thread.