WORLD POPULATION DAY 2025: A CALL FOR YOUTH EMPOWERMENT

Anthony EKPO BASSEY 

Every July 11th, the world reflects on a reality that touches every corner of our lives, which is our rapidly growing population. This World Population Day 2025, the spotlight shifts with purposeful urgency toward one vital truth: if we are to steer humanity toward sustainability, we must empower our youth. Not tomorrow but today.

As the global population surpasses 8.2 billion, the challenges we face are not merely about numbers, they are about nurturing the next generation, who are not merely passengers on this journey, but the very ones who will drive us forward. The youths of today are the seeds of tomorrow, and they hold in their hands the potential to cultivate a future that is not just liveable, but flourishing.

Our young people are not problems to be solved; they are possibilities waiting to be unlocked. Yet, far too many are left behind and deprived of quality education, decent employment, health services, and platforms for expression. When potential is stifled, hope withers. And as the saying goes, “A hungry youth does not listen to the drumbeat.”

Empowering youth is not a charity. It is an investment. It means equipping them with the knowledge to make informed decisions, especially about their health and families. It means ensuring every girl has the right to education, to dream beyond domestic boundaries, to grow into a woman who shapes society rather than be shaped by it.

For instance, when a girl stays in school, she marries later, has fewer children, and contributes more to her community. Multiply that across millions, and the impact on global population trends becomes clear as day. And yet, in many places, girls are still silenced by stigma, shut out of schools, and shackled by outdated norms. That must change not gradually, but with grit and urgency.

But education alone is not the endgame. Young people need more than degrees. They need direction. The world is brimming with bright minds but barren markets. Talented youths roam the streets unemployed, not because they lack ability, but because the systems have failed to match skills with opportunities. Idle hands are the devil’s workshop, and nothing breeds unrest like unrealised potentials.

Let’s spark a shift. Let’s build systems that empower entrepreneurship, invest in tech and trades, and reward innovation over imitation. Let’s turn passion into purpose and education into enterprise.

This movement is not just global but it’s deeply local. Governments can pass policies, but communities must carry the torch. Families, teachers, mentors, and leaders must be the wind beneath youthful wings. Because if we teach them well and trust them enough, youth will not only rise, they will lift us all with them.

So, on this World Population Day, let’s not simply mark time with token gestures. Let’s ignite real change. Let’s listen to young voices not as background noise, but as the beating heart of progress. Let us remember: "The young eagle learns to fly by leaping from the cliff." It is time we give them that leap with safety, with support, and with solid ground to soar from.

Population is not just a number. It is a narrative of human potential. And if we get it right with our youth, the story of our future might just be one worth telling.