Event summary: Webinar on Youth Voices at the Hearth of Decision Making in Health
30th January 2026
More than 300 youth across the globe joined the global webinar series on Social Participation entitled Youth Voices at the Hearth of Decision Making in Health on January 28,2026.
Article first published by the Thailand National Health Commission Office
The webinar – the second in a series on social participation in health – was co-organized by World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with Thailand National Health Commission Office (NHCO) and the Civil Society Engagement Mechanism for UHC2030 (CSEM).
The dialogue showcased diverse models from Brazil’s Youth Health Conferences and Nigeria’s continental youth policy networks to Slovenia’s legally embedded youth organizations and Thailand’s Youth National Health Assembly – demonstrating that youth participation is advancing across different political and health system contexts
Youth representatives from Egypt highlighted the importance of equipping future health professionals with policy literacy and leadership skills to bridge clinical practice and health governances. The French Youth Delegation for Global Health emphasized the value of formally integrating young people into national and multilateral health diplomacy processes to ensure their voices shape global decision making. Meanwhile, the representative from WHO Youth Council and Grassroot Soccer in Zambia underscored the critical role of grassroots youth organizations in advancing community-based health promotion, particularly in areas of HIA prevention, mental health and health security.
Dr. Sampan Silapana, President of Thailand’s National Health Assembly, stressed the demographic and democratic urgency of youth inclusion. In Thailand alone, the population aged 35 and below represents 50% of the total population. Thailand’s National Health Assembly has already integrated youth into agenda-setting, policy drafting and implementation processes. Dr. Sampan proposed a structural reform: requiring youth representation in governance bodies.
Dr. Natasha Azzopardi Muscat, of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, emphasized that Europe is an ageing continent, and too often young people feel their voices aren’t being heard. Meaningful youth participation is essential to shaping policies that truly reflect their realities.
Four enabling factors to strengthen youth voices in the policy process consistently emerged:
- Structured integration of youth across the entire policy cycle, from agenda-setting to implementation
- Capacity building and the development of essential skills for meaningful participation in the policy process
- Legal frameworks and funding resources to ensure continuous and meaningful youth participation
- Simplified policy processes and the use of clear, accessible language for all youth, especially those from vulnerable groups
The dialogue forms part of the implementation of the World Health Assembly resolution on social participation, which calls on Member States to embed participatory governance as a foundational element of health systems.
