Empowering Youth Through Positive Youth Development (PYD)

With 1.2 billion youth worldwide, young people represent a diverse group with varied life experiences and aspirations. Despite their potential for leadership in areas such as advocacy, innovation, and education, they are often treated as passive recipients of programs. To change this, USAID, through its Youth in Development policy and initiatives like YouthPower Learning (YPL) and YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation (YP2LE), promotes Positive Youth Development (PYD). PYD empowers youth, along with their families, communities, and governments, to reach their full potential by building skills, fostering relationships, and transforming systems.

This final report for YP2LE, awarded to Making Cents International in 2019, highlights major activities, progress, and future directions for youth development. Over five years, YP2LE deepened the evidence base for PYD and promoted best practices across multiple sectors. The initiative focused on fostering inclusive engagement, expanding PYD principles, and providing technical support to USAID, helping transform how the development sector partners with youth to create sustainable, youth-centered programs.