About the Commonwealth Youth Awards
Organised and delivered by the Commonwealth Youth Programme, the Commonwealth Youth Awards for Excellence in Development Work aims to recognise and celebrate young people (aged 15 – 29) in the Commonwealth who are spearheading impactful, sustainable development work in their communities.
This year, the Commonwealth Foundation and the Khalili Foundation have joined as our partners for the 2025 Awards to offer additional grants and prizes to eligible applicants.
The main objectives of the Commonwealth Youth Awards are to:
- Highlight Contributions: Recognize and celebrate the outstanding contributions of young people in promoting a future built on fairness, peace, prosperity, and sustainability. This includes efforts toward achieving the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Encourage Youth-Led Development: Foster an environment that encourages and sustains investments in youth-led development initiatives, empowering young leaders to drive change in their communities.
- Showcase Talent and Creativity: Illustrate the depth and breadth of talent, commitment, and creativity among young people across the Commonwealth by sharing nominees’ success stories, thereby inspiring others.
- Motivate and Challenge Young People: Motivate, encourage, and challenge young people to set high standards for their work and service at community, national, regional, or international levels.
- Provide Special Recognition and Support: In partnership with the Commonwealth Foundation, offer special recognition to outstanding young individuals, with the potential to award Capacity Strengthening Grants to selected regional finalists. These grants are contingent upon successful reporting and assessment.
- Recognize Peace and Development Efforts: In partnership with the Khalili Foundation, support the recognition of three Peace and Development Prizes for eligible young changemakers, celebrating their contributions to creating a more peaceful and equitable world.
Nomination Requirements
- The nominee must have been engaged in development work for more than 12 months, either in a professional or voluntary capacity;
- The nominee must be a Commonwealth citizen and the development work must be taking place in a Commonwealth member country;
- The nominee be aged 15 to 29 years old on 31 December 2024; and
- Individuals can nominate themselves or be nominated by someone who can accurately describe their development work.
Awards will be decided on the basis of:
- Level of impact;
- Level of innovation/fresh approaches to problem solving;
- Quality of achievement;
- Quality of the evidence provided; and
- Sustainability.
Awards Process
There will be four finalists for each Commonwealth region with the top entries receiving the Regional Winner Award. The top Regional Winner will receive the Pan-Commonwealth Award and be named the Commonwealth Young Person of the Year 2025.
The 20 Regional Finalists will each receive a £1,000 grant, a trophy and a certificate.
The 5 Regional Winners will receive an additional £2,000 (a total of £3,000) a trophy and a certificate.
The Pan-Commonwealth Winner will receive an additional £2,000 (a total of £5,000) a trophy and a certificate.
The Khalili Foundation will also present 3 youth PEACE awards to young people working in peace and development. Addtional grants may be offered by the Commonwealth Foundation based on eligibility.
Winners will be officially announced during Commonwealth Week in March 2025.
