Pre-COP31 is underway in Fiji, bringing Ministers from 50+ countries together ahead of COP31. On the table: climate finance, adaptation, loss & damage, the $1.3T/year finance roadmap, and the 1.5°C goal. YTJN’s position, guided by Uganda’s 2026 National Youth & Children’s Climate Statement (NCYS), calls for; ✅direct youth access to finance, ✅youth climate budget tracking, ✅stronger loss & damage action, ✅and meaningful youth representation at COP31. 98% of 3,187 young Ugandans surveyed through U-Report want youth voices in negotiations. Read the NYCS here: bit.ly/4rOVndv Pre-COP closes on 8 October. We will share a full read of the outcomes.

On this #InternationalDayOfDemocracy, we recognize that every budget is a vote on whom a country serves. Every line item decides whose priorities count. When young people get a seat at that table, democracy stops being a ballot cast once every few years. It becomes a daily practice of holding power accountable. Across Africa, young people are redefining #democracy by demanding #accountability, #transparency, and oversight of public #resources between elections. 🇺🇬 YTJN joined other stakeholders under the Tax Justice Alliance Uganda to define what Uganda's tax system should look like if we are to raise more domestic revenue and make the burden fairer. The retreat, convened by SEATINI UGANDA, produced TJAU's Alternative Tax Proposals for FY2027/28, now headed to MoFPED and Parliament. 🇰🇪 Students at Mount Kenya University - MKU and Zetech University are shaping the Kenya Youth Manifesto 2027 through campus consultations with the Manifesto Yetu Coalition. 🇧🇼 With Botswana Watch, sustained youth advocacy is turning budget participation into real oversight. A budget line is a decision about whose future gets funded. Young people are showing up to that decision. @SEATINIUGANDA @SeatiniU @taxalliance_ug @ManifestoYetu @ZetechUni @MountKenyaUni @BotswanaWatch