Thai youth speak: COVID-19 impact & responses-Panel discussion and survey findings

UNFPA, UNICEF in partnership with the FCCT.

The Covid-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented global crisis, disrupting the lives of millions of people around the world. The multi-dimensional challenges of the pandemic affect all of society, particularly young people, caught at a critical stage of their development. In Thailand, about 22% of the population are youth between 15 and 30 years old. They, too, are suffering the prospects of diminished job prospects and livelihoods..

The United Nations Sub-Group on Young People, co-chaired by UNFPA and UNICEF, conducted the first comprehensive survey among young people in Thailand April, receiving responses from 6,700 youth. The first comprehensive survey was the cooperation among the Children and Youth Council of Thailand, UNICEF, UNDP, and UNFPA in March, and it received responses from 6,771 young people.

A second round of research saw a series of five online surveys to assess the impact of Covid-19 on ethnic and stateless youth, teenage mothers, youth with disabilities, youth from the three southernmost provinces and general youth on their sexual and reproductive health in Thailand. These surveys were conducted from end of March to July 24, 2020.

This forum, to be held in the FCCT clubhouse and livestreamed via the club’s Facebook page, organised in partnership with the FCCT. A panel discussion and briefings will highlight the survey findings and provide a platform for vulnerable youth, including those from ethnic backgrounds, those with disabilities, those from Thailand’s southern region, and teen mothers, to voice the challenges they face and suggestions for policymakers across relevant sectors.

Youth representatives and experts joining this panel discussion are:

• Kamolchanok Boonketwattanakul (Ice), President, Youth with Sight Impairment Club
• Kam-ing Loongsang, Ethnic youth advocate for Rights of Ethnic Youth (affiliated with RaksThai Foundation); (via Skype)
• Yothin Thongpawa (Yo), Deputy president of Children and Youth Council of Thailand, and youth representative in the National Committee on Reducing Adolescent Pregnancies

Moderator: Nalutporn Krairiksh, ThisAble.me

Note: Discussion is in Thai with simultaneous translation into English.

Keynote address:

• Thomas Davin, UNICEF Thailand Representative
• Wassana Im-em, Head of Office, UNFPA Thailand on behalf of the UN Sub-group on young people

Short briefing: Dr Marc Voelker, Institute for Population and Social Research of Mahidol University

Q&A:

• Gita Sabarwhal, UN Resident Coordinator
• Representatives, UNFPA, UNICEF and members of the UN Sub-group on young people
• Institute for Population and Social Research, Mahidol University

(Moderated by Gwen Robinson, FCCT president)