Kathmandu, 29 August 2026 — Diverse young people gathered in Kathmandu on 26 and 27 August 2026 for Bhalakusari, a youth listening and dialogue initiative focused on democratic participation, governance, and civic engagement. The two-day engagement brought together LGBTIQA+ youth, youth with disabilities (PwD), and other diverse and marginalized young people to share their experiences, concerns, challenges, and expectations from government and democratic institutions. The event was organized by Kayapalat in collaboration with UNDP Nepal, providing an inclusive space for young people to openly discuss the realities they experience and the gaps they see in Nepal’s governance and democratic processes.
A central message emerging from the discussions was that although young people are increasingly recognized as important stakeholders, their meaningful participation in decision-making remains limited. Participants reflected on their experiences of engaging with government institutions at the local, provincial, and federal levels, noting that youth are often invited to programmes, consultations, campaigns, and community mobilization activities, but their involvement rarely extends to actual decision-making. They emphasized that participation should not end with consultation or representation; young people should be meaningfully involved in planning, policymaking, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
Participants particularly highlighted the situation of non-political youth, who they felt are frequently overlooked by government institutions. Young people who are not affiliated with political parties or established political networks often face difficulties accessing formal decision-making spaces, despite possessing valuable knowledge, skills, lived experiences, and community-level contributions. The discussions raised concerns that governments sometimes engage young people primarily as a means of mobilization or outreach rather than recognizing them as equal civic actors capable of contributing to governance and policy development.
Another important concern was the gap between recognition and meaningful action. Youth with disabilities and other diverse participants shared that their concerns are often acknowledged by government representatives and institutions, but these commitments do not always translate into concrete implementation. Participants stressed that inclusion must go beyond inviting marginalized groups into consultations or programmes. Their priorities must be reflected in policies, programmes, budgets, implementation mechanisms, and monitoring processes. They called for institutions to treat communities not merely as beneficiaries of government programmes but as active participants and partners in governance.
The changing nature of civic space also emerged as a major concern, particularly in relation to digital harms and threats. Young people discussed the opportunities and challenges created by digital platforms, including online discrimination, misinformation, harassment, and other forms of digital vulnerability. While digital spaces have created new opportunities for young people to express themselves and participate in civic life, participants emphasized that these spaces can also expose them to new forms of exclusion and harm. They called for safer digital environments, greater awareness, and stronger responses to emerging digital threats affecting young people.
The climate crisis and its impacts were also identified as growing concerns for young people. Participants reflected on how climate change is increasingly affecting communities, livelihoods, infrastructure, economic opportunities, and their future prospects. They emphasized that climate change should not be viewed only as an environmental issue, but also as a question of justice, inequality, livelihood, resilience, and democratic participation. Young people called for greater opportunities to participate in climate-related planning, policymaking, and local solutions.
For LGBTIQA+ youth, the discussions brought forward particularly concerning experiences related to identity, stigma, discrimination, social exclusion, and acceptance. Participants shared that despite progress in recognizing diversity and rights, many young people continue to face discriminatory attitudes within families, communities, institutions, workplaces, and wider society. They highlighted that the struggle for acceptance remains an everyday reality and that formal recognition of rights does not always translate into dignity, safety, and equal opportunities in practice.
One of the most significant concerns raised by LGBTIQA+ participants was the lack of attention to intersectionality. Participants explained that discrimination and exclusion are often experienced through multiple and overlapping identities. For example, being LGBTIQA+ may intersect with disability, caste, class, gender, geography, economic status, or other social factors, creating different and sometimes deeper barriers. However, policies and programmes often address these issues separately, failing to adequately recognize the complex realities faced by individuals. Participants therefore called for more intersectional approaches in policy formation, service delivery, and civic engagement.
LGBTIQA+ youth also identified lack of unified voices, limited civic participation and engagement, unemployment, lack of opportunities, and increasing digital threats as major challenges. They discussed the difficulties marginalized young people face in accessing employment, leadership opportunities, public institutions, and decision-making spaces. At the same time, participants emphasized that building stronger collective voices should not mean ignoring diversity within communities. Instead, they called for platforms that encourage dialogue, solidarity, collective advocacy, and meaningful participation while respecting differences.
Despite the challenges discussed, Bhalakusari was not simply a space for identifying problems. Participants also shared personal experiences, community stories, and examples of resilience and action. LGBTIQA+ youth and other diverse young people discussed how they are challenging stigma, supporting their communities, raising awareness, creating safe spaces, and finding ways to participate despite existing barriers. These experiences demonstrated that young people are already contributing to positive change within their communities and are not simply waiting for institutions to act.
The discussions ultimately highlighted a significant gap between official narratives of inclusion and the lived experiences of young people. While governments may have policies, programmes, consultations, and commitments aimed at addressing youth and marginalized communities, participants emphasized that the real test of inclusion is whether their voices influence decisions, budgets, policies, institutions, and outcomes. Recognition without implementation, consultation without influence, and representation without decision-making power cannot constitute meaningful participation.
Bhalakusari therefore reinforced the need to move from tokenistic participation to meaningful civic engagement. Young people, particularly those from marginalized and underrepresented communities, want to be more than participants in government programmes or beneficiaries of public policies. They want to be heard, valued, represented, and meaningfully involved in decisions that directly affect their lives and communities.
The two-day engagement served as an important reminder that Nepal’s democratic future depends on creating spaces where every young person can participate regardless of political affiliation, identity, disability, or social background. The voices shared through Bhalakusari call for more responsive institutions, stronger civic spaces, inclusive policies, and governance systems that recognize young people as active citizens and partners in democracy.
Ultimately, the message was clear: young people do not simply want to be consulted they want to help shape the decisions that shape their future.