Systematic Review of PYD in Low- and Mid-Income Countries

Article Date

27 April 2017

Media Contact

Anne McPherson

Vice President, Global Communications email [email protected]

Positive youth development (PYD) is an approach that aims to build and support the competencies, skills and abilities of youth so that they are empowered to reach their full potential. Building the assets and skills of young people has been shown to improve outcomes for youth in high-income countries. But what does PYD look like in programs for youth in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)? How does PYD strengthen youth-focused programming and impact cross-sectoral outcomes?

Advancing youth health and well-being and promoting the active involvement of young people in social and economic development are increasingly priorities for many donors and development organizations taking a holistic approach to youth development.

Under the USAID-funded, Making Cents International-led YouthPower Learning project, ICRW, Results for Development, University of Melbourne, and University of Washington conducted a systematic review to synthesize what is known in the literature about PYD and identify the gaps to inform future research in this area. The systematic review provides key recommendations on program design, implementation and evaluation, which will help donors, implementers and researchers identify priorities – in turn strengthening the design and effectiveness of youth-focused projects.

Download the full report here.