More than 15 different countries and from 400 student and youth leaders all throughout the Philippines gathered for an open-minded exchange of diverse perspectives on contemporary global challenges especially the attainment of the MDGs (Millennium Development Goals).



Despite the heavy rain downpour in the venue, the 12th International Youth Day Celebration & Conference continues to facilitate dialogue and cooperation across an ethnically diverse and socially responsible group of student and youth leaders.



The said event started last August 3 where all participants billeted at Sarabia Manor Hotel and Convention Center in Iloilo City. It will end on August 7 2011.



The objectives of the 5-day conference are as follows;
• to provide a venue for youth leaders and educators in the Philippines and Asia Pacific Region to come together; share and process their experiences; identify their strengths and weaknesses; and enhance leadership skills, techniques and strategies in the pursuit of the UN Millennium Development Goals;
• to promote solidarity, unity, cooperation and harmony among youth participants towards poverty-free Philippines by 2015 through the United Nations Volunteers campaign of the IYV + 10 commemoration;
• to strengthen youth volunteers programs in the pursuit of MDGs among youth groups like the student councils, Sangguniang Kabataan and UNYAP Chapters in the region.



Central Philippine University in Jaro, a 24-hectare campus and home of the largest library in Western Visayas, with more than 200,000 volumes including holdings of special collections like the 40,000 United Nations documents, were tasked as host.



The 12th IYD celebration is spearheaded by the United Nations Association of the Philippines and United Nations Youth Associations of thePhilippines with endorsement from Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Department of Education (DepEd), National Youth Commission (NYC), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines.



IYD was started in 1999 in Manila, Philippines. It was a fitting tribute to youth volunteers with the theme “The Role of Youth Volunteers in the Promotion of the Culture of Peace and Sustainable Development”, eighty (80) youth leaders from Japan, the Philippines, Brazil, Cambodia, East Timor, Korea, Indonesia, Israel, Thailand, Germany, Myanmar and Vietnam drafted action plans for the regional and national celebration of the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World (IDPNCW). This will be the first IYD that will be held outside Metro Manila.