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Registration to Side Event: From Financial Literacy to Financial Agency: Empowering Youth for Sustainable and Resilient Economies

Background

Young people today face increasing economic uncertainty, including rising living costs, limited access to affordable financial services, and structural barriers to entrepreneurship and innovation. Financial stress is becoming a defining challenge for younger generations – with 1 in 3 young adults reporting financial stress as their primary mental health stressor (APA).

While financial literacy initiatives have expanded globally, they often remain insufficient in enabling young people to translate knowledge into meaningful economic participation. Evidence shows that financial capability has significant long-term impacts: financially literate individuals accumulate up to 25% more wealth over their lifetime (TIAA Institute), and countries with higher levels of financial literacy experience reduced strain on pension systems by up to 20% (OECD).

At the same time, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires inclusive economic systems that empower youth not only as beneficiaries, but as active contributors. Financial literacy, when combined with access to financial tools, capital, and opportunities, can evolve into financial agency — the ability of young people to make informed financial decisions, build economic resilience, and actively participate in economic and innovative ecosystems.

The economic potential of improved financial behavior is substantial. Estimates suggest that enhanced financial decision-making could increase household savings in the European Union by over €100 billion annually (ECB). Despite this, youth financial empowerment is not yet consistently integrated into broader economic and development policies. Bridging this gap is essential to unlocking youth-led contributions to sustainable and resilient economies, particularly in the context of SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).

Objectives

🔴 Reframe financial literacy as a systemic driver of sustainable development, emphasizing its role in enabling young people to actively participate in economic systems and decision-making processes.
🔴 Identify key barriers that prevent young people from accessing financial tools, capital and opportunities necessary for entrepreneurship, innovation and economic resilience.
🔴 Explore policy approaches and practical solutions that integrate financial empowerment into youth, economic and development strategies at national and international levels.
🔴 Highlight the role of partnerships (SDG 17) in connecting governments, youth, financial institutions and international organizations to support youth economic empowerment.
🔴 Promote youth entrepreneurship and inclusive innovation ecosystems (SDG 9) as pathways for sustainable economic growth and youth-led contributions to the SDGs.
🔴 Foster dialogue across regions, including perspectives from both developed and developing contexts, to ensure inclusive and context-sensitive solutions.
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Venue

In person at the Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations, One Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza, 885 Second Avenue, 48th Floor, and virtual (link will be send after registration).
Language: English only, without interpretation.