The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Global Citizen have launched the #showyourselfie global campaign to urge world leaders to prioritize the needs and rights of young people in the post-2015 development agenda.

There are 1.8 billion young people in the world today – more than ever before. Yet, millions of them, especially girls, lack access to basic needs, such as education, health services, comprehensive sexuality education, decent work and protection from violence.  More than 500 million young people live on less than $2 a day, and nearly 175 million of them in poor countries cannot read a full sentence. Some 74 million youth aged 15-24 are unemployed.

UNFPA encourages people around the world to take and submit a ‘selfie’ via Twitter, Instagram or the website www.showyourselfie.org. The campaign will collate the personal portraits and stories and present them to decision makers as a massive display of public support for increased attention to and investment in the capabilities of young people, specifically in the areas of reproductive health, education and training for work and life.

Over the next 13 months, UNFPA and Global Citizen will work closely with partners, networks and organizations to gather the “selfies” which will be handed over to Member States at the United Nations General Assembly in September 2014 and 2015 to remind them that the time to invest in young people is now.

For more information, visit the UNFPA website.