The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) established the National Youth Assembly to act as a consultative youth forum on topics of national interest.
The National Youth Assembly plays a significant role in including the voice of young people in implementing public policy and prioritising actions for Government.
The Youth Assembly provides young people with an opportunity to make recommendations directly to Government to inform public policy.
The National Youth Assembly of Ireland is an overarching structure for Youth Assemblies that meet on different policy topics that are of importance to and impact on young people. The National Youth Assembly on Climate and the Rural Youth Assembly take place every year. The National Youth Assembly also meets up to two more times a year on the different topics. For instance in 2022, the Youth Assembly on Artificial Intelligence met to hear what young people had to say on artificial intelligence and what they think the government should be doing.
The establishment of the Youth Assemblies on a range of topics was a key commitment in the Programme for Government 2020. DCEDIY established the National Youth Assembly of Ireland to meet this commitment.
DCEDIY, in partnership with the National Participation Office (NPO), collaborates closely with other government departments to convene Youth Assemblies on specific topics. For instance, DCEDIY collaborates closely with the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) to convene the annual National Youth Assembly on Climate and with the Department of Rural, Community Development (DRCD) to convene the annual Rural Youth Assembly. This ensures that the government department with responsibility for the policy area under discussion is part of the process of consulting young people, and therefore in the best position to understand and act on the recommendations made.
Youth Assembly delegates range in ages from 12 to 24 years and come from all across Ireland.
Approximately 60 young people are selected to sit on the National Youth Assembly for a term of 18 months. These sitting delegates are nominated by Comhairle na nÓg (Local Youth Councils) and by established youth organisations.
Delegates are selected with an aim to have a broad representation of diverse young people from a range of youth organisations, taking into account geographical spread, urban/rural representation, age, gender and seldom heard.
Guest delegates join the Assembly on a temporary basis from organisations and groups with a particular focus on the topic of the Assembly. These are young people with a particular expertise or interest in the specific topic of the Assembly. They attend one Assembly and its accompanying meetings.
Look out for callouts from your local Comhairle na nÓg (Local Youth Council) or youth organisation.
Please contact citizenparticipation@equality.gov.ie to request that a youth organisation is included in callouts.
The role of the National Youth Assembly delegates is to:
- attend Assembly meetings and other relevant meetings and participate to the best of their ability
- advise on upcoming policy developments in various government departments
- make recommendations to government departments and Ministers
- keep nominating organisation informed of developments and decisions
Other opportunities, such as advising on the development of youth friendly versions of reports, membership of Youth Advisory Groups (YAGs) for planning, or sitting on other stakeholder groups, may be offered to delegates.
Each time the National Youth Assembly is convened, a YAG is established to ensure that there is a youth led approach to the Assemblies. The YAG consists of approximately eight Assembly delegates who play an important role in planning the Assembly. They help co-design the format for the day of the Assembly, pilot the interactive activities, test consultation methods, suggest expert speakers and make decisions alongside the DCEDIY and National Participation Office officials. YAG members also host the preparation session for the delegates and co-facilitate the Assembly event.
link to National Youth Assembly of Ireland campaign page.