The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Liberia will convene the UNDP National Youth Dialogue 2026 on April 22, 2026, at Sinkor Palace, Congo Town, bringing together a dynamic and carefully selected group of young leaders from across Liberia’s creative, innovation, sports, entrepreneurship, and social transformation spaces.
The oneday national dialogue, running from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, will serve as a highenergy, working platform designed to listen to youth voices, cocreate solutions, and reimagine how development partners, particularly UNDP can more effectively support youthdriven innovation, opportunity, and partnership in Liberia.
Held under the theme “Innovation, Opportunity and Partnership: Reimagining How Young People Shape Liberia’s Future,” the dialogue will convene approximately 50 young innovators, digital content creators and influencers, entrepreneurs and startup founders, athletes and sports leaders, fashion designers, youth advocates and activists and musicians and artists among others.
Participants have been selected based on their demonstrated leadership, creativity, influence, and impact within their communities and sectors.
Liberia is a nation with most of its population under the age of 35. Across the country, young people are building businesses, shaping popular culture, driving digital innovation, mobilizing communities, and influencing national conversations.
From tech startups in Monrovia to creative industries, sports, climate action, and grassroots civic engagement, young Liberians are redefining what leadership looks like.
Yet despite this momentum, many young people continue to face structural barriers, including limited access to finance, uneven skills development opportunities, weak mentorship networks, underfinanced creative and sports industries, and limited participation in formal decisionmaking processes.
Recognizing that young people are not just beneficiaries but creators, innovators, and economic actors, UNDP Liberia is convening this dialogue as part of a renewed commitment to center youth as partners in development.
Speaking ahead of the dialogue, the UNDP Resident Representative in Liberia underscored the importance of listening and cocreating with young people.
“Young people in Liberia are not waiting for the future—they are already creating it. Across arts, entrepreneurship, technology, sports, and civic action, young Liberians are driving change every day.
This dialogue is about listening carefully, learning from lived experience, and building partnerships that expand opportunity and unlock the full potential of this generation,” Aliou Dia said.
A Working Dialogue, Not a Ceremony
Designed deliberately and intentionally as a working engagement rather than a ceremonial event, the National Youth Dialogue will prioritize honest conversations, practical reflections, and cocreation.
It will create a safe and inclusive space for young people to speak candidly about their realities, challenges, and aspirations while working alongside UNDP to identify actionable solutions.
The program will begin with a networking breakfast, followed by an opening session setting expectations and objectives. A “Reality Check” plenary discussion will examine the systemic barriers young people face today.
Participants will then engage in thematic breakout working groups focusing on priority areas such as:
- Youth employment and entrepreneurship
- Innovation and digital transformation
- Creative industries (music, fashion, media, content creation)
- Sports, leadership, and personal development
- Civic engagement and climate action
Each group will develop clear, actionable recommendations, outlining key challenges, practical solutions, and specific roles UNDP can play. Findings will be presented in plenary and prioritized through a structured voting process to identify the most urgent and highimpact areas.
A working lunch session will focus on designing sustainable engagement mechanisms, including options such as a Youth Advisory Group, thematic working groups, innovation platforms, youth ambassador models, and longterm partnership pathways.
The dialogue will close with a commitment and nextsteps session, ensuring continuity beyond the event.
Shaping a New Youth Engagement Strategy
Expected outcomes of the UNDP National Youth Dialogue 2026 include:
- A consolidated set of youthdefined priority areas
- Actionable recommendations to inform UNDP Liberia’s Youth Engagement Strategy
- Identification of potential youth partners, advisors, and collaborators
- Agreement on structured mechanisms for sustained engagement
Following the dialogue, UNDP Liberia will produce a concise outcome report summarizing key insights and agreed priority actions. UNDP will outline next steps, which may include the establishment of a youth advisory platform, pilot initiatives in priority sectors, and integration of youth recommendations into upcoming program cycles.
By convening this National Youth Dialogue, UNDP Liberia reaffirms its commitment to listening, learning, and evolving how it works with young people—laying the foundation for a more inclusive, responsive, and forwardlooking partnership with Liberia’s emerging generation of leaders.
The UNDP National Youth Dialogue 2026 is by invitation only and will be attended exclusively by selected participants.
