On July 29, 2025, three representatives from NetMission.Asia team –Jenna Fung (Program Director), Bea Guevarra (Head of Program Development), and Socheata Sokhachan (Head of Community Engagement) – intervened as speakers at the WSIS+20 Informal Stakeholder Consultation Session to make sure young people were present, heard, and counted. Co-facilitated by H.E. Ms. Suela Janina (Permanent Representative of Albania) and H.E. Mr. Ekitela Lokaale (Permanent Representative of Kenya), the session gathered close to 90 non-governmental stakeholders from across the globe to provide direct input on the WSIS+20 Elements Paper.
For NetMission, this moment was more than symbolic, because it was a chance to bring lived realities and policy insights from youth across Asia-Pacific directly into global digital governance. Drawing from findings from NetMission’s latest Asia Pacific Policy Observatory report on AI and digital governance, and inputs from young people from at least 17 economies engaged through the APAC Youth WSIS+20 Series, our interventions amplified underrepresented voices and highlighted actionable youth priorities for the digital future.
Each representative delivered a three-minute intervention focused on a thematic area of the Elements Paper:
- Socheata Sokhachan on ICT for development (Paragraph 13-16): She emphasized that digital development must go beyond infrastructure to address affordability, digital literacy, and local relevance – especially for rural and marginalized communities. She called for a rights-based, youth-centered approach to ICTs that empowers young people as co-creators, not just beneficiaries, and urged stakeholders to support grassroots, youth-led innovation that truly uplifts and includes all.
- Bea Guevarra on Capacity building (Paragraph 77-81): She emphasized youth’s strong commitment to digital cooperation. She called for capacity building that empowers youth not just as trainees but as leaders. She urged investment in localized, multilingual resources, rights-based and policy training, and real roles in governance. Meaningful inclusion also means financial support through mentorships, microgrants, and fellowships, and recognition of youth as distinct stakeholders in the WSIS+20 Zero Draft, beyond a token mention. She ended with a call for intergenerational accountability and sustained youth participation in shaping digital futures.
- Jenna Fung on Monitoring and measurement (Paragraph 82-84): She highlighted the need for youth-centered, rights-based approaches to data governance, digital inclusion, and measurement in the WSIS+20 process. She stressed that connectivity alone is not enough—youth also need digital literacy, safety, and meaningful participation. She called for new metrics that reflect real inclusion, including youth mental health, online safety, and representation in policymaking. Jenna urged stakeholders to embed young people as co-creators in monitoring frameworks to ensure that data leads to empowerment, not just measurement.
Our collective message was clear: youth across the Asia-Pacific are showing up, speaking up, and ready to shape the digital future – if only given the space and trust to do so. For us at NetMission.Asia, this moment reaffirmed why youth participation in digital governance isn’t just necessary, it’s transformative. We’re grateful to be part of this milestone consultation and to carry forward youth voices that are often overlooked yet deeply impacted by the digital policies being shaped today.
To learn more about our interventions, you may watch the official recording, read our submitted written inputs to the Elements Paper and refer to the full text of our oral statements on ICT for Development, Capacity Building, and Monitoring and Measurement.
Written by Jenna Fung