6 \ Global Youth Development Index and Report 2016 At least one-third of young people in the world live in fragile and conflict-affected states, thus disproportionately bearing the brunt of war and violence. Young people, especially men, are victims of homicide far more often than older people. Estimates suggest that more than 50 per cent of all the victims of homicide in the world are under 30 years of age and the vast majority of them live in low and middle-income countries.3 Similarly, the number of young people forcibly displaced by conflict and disasters has increased significantly over the past few years. In 2011, around 14 million young people were adversely affected by conflict and disasters. The figures are likely to be much higher today, given that the number of forcibly displaced people hit a record high of 65.3 million in 2015.4 times young people have expressed their views, voiced their demands or registered their protest through both formal and non-formal channels, often bypassing traditional participation structures and institutions. The ubiquity of social media and mobile phones is making it more and more possible for young people to connect with each other, get organised quickly and inexpensively, and mobilise support for campaigns and agendas that can transcend cultural, geographic and legal borders.8 Since 2009, social unrest and protest movements have gripped almost every region of the world, some leading to radical political transformation, and others to violence and instability.9 The message is clear: young people will not settle for an inadequate status quo if they can help it. Although climate change threatens to inflict dire consequences on the entire world, its debilitating impact will be faced first and foremost by those who are young now. In the more vulnerable parts of the world, such as small island developing states, climate change is not just a risk any more; its effects are being felt already, disrupting lives and destroying ageold ways of life. Whether they want to or not, young people will bear the burden of leading their countries and communities through this uncharted territory. Young people everywhere are also proving at every opportunity their capacity to be champions, agents and partners in fostering all-round development at local, national and international levels. From countering climate change to peace-building, from strengthening human rights to tackling inequality, it is often young people who are showing the way with their innovative ideas and modern approaches. Within the youth cohort, inequalities persist among individuals and between social groups. Many young people continue to face inequalities and discrimination in accessing the building blocks of human development because of their gender, class, sexual orientation, geographical location, disability or ethnicity. Within the youth population, widespread gender disparities in health, education, employment and participation are still entrenched. In 2015, out of 183 countries, just over one-third had achieved gender parity in enrolment at the secondary education level, with the gap widening at the tertiary level, where only 4 per cent of countries had achieved gender parity in enrolment.5 Moreover, in developing countries, one in three girls is married before her 18th birthday and more than one-half of victims of all sexual assaults across the world are girls younger than 16.6 These inequalities often become entrenched in the lives of young people and result in inequality traps, which most young individuals and groups find hard to escape. Young people are responding to the opportunities and challenges they face in a variety of ways. Although frequently portrayed as disengaged or excluded from formal political processes,7 in recent The world has an unprecedented opportunity today to lay the foundations of a better future for young people. Governments have the obligation to recognise the barriers to youth development, overcome them with policies and programmes that have young people at their heart, and help promote progressive youth development. This last objective should be based on an understanding of youth development that not only recognises the agency of the individual but also emphasises the structures and contexts in which young lives take shape. It is universally acknowledged that young people represent promise. Yet surprisingly little is known about the current state of affairs in youth development. Measuring progress on youth development continues to be a challenge, even though its importance is widely recognised. 1.1  Defining youth Although it is a familiar term, there is still no universally recognised definition of ‘youth’. While adolescence is widely understood as the period of life that begins with puberty and ends once physical and emotional maturity is established, definitions of youth are more contextual, dependent as much on formal nomenclatures as on informal factors such as culture, tradition and socio-economic conditions