With the motto “unity in diversity,” Kenya’s Inter-Party Youth Forum (IPYF) is bringing together young political party activists from across the political spectrum to collaborate on solutions to the most pressing issues facing the nation’s youth, including unemployment, substance abuse and disenfranchisement.

Nine years after the end of a civil war that ravaged the country for more than a decade, Liberian youth continue to face staggering unemployment, lack of access to quality education and limited representation in government policymaking.

Of the 64 percent of Liberians living below the poverty line, 68 percent are young people. Among the unemployed, 58 percent are youth, members of a generation that grew up without access to education and are unqualified for many of the jobs currently available. Many have turned to crime as a result.

This story was originally published in USAID-Nepal's June 2012 e-newsletter.

All of Sierra Leone’s eight registered political parties have signed an “Open and Safe Elections Pledge” to promote an electoral atmosphere free of violence and intimidation and to encourage women to participate in the election process. The country is slated to have presidential, parliamentary and local elections on Nov. 17.