Transcript
The event was organised by the South Pacific Community (SPC) through its Regional Rights Resource Team project.
Fijian youth leader Broderick Mervyn says young people should be able to call on their governments to respect the rule of law.
He says young people have been at the forefront of the climate crisis fight across the region.
"We want to move away from that tokenistic approach and focus more on how we can participate and actively get engaged in decision-making - whether it be at the national level, regional level or international level."
He says the recent election of human rights lawyer Lionel Aingimea as Nauru president is testament to the engagement of young people in decision-making.
"It also allows the opportunity for many young people to actually get critically engaged in politics because these laws and legislations that are passed in our parliaments and assembly bodies affect young people at large."
Another youth leader, Marica Risieta, told participants Pacific youth are already providing leadership, entrepreneurship and innovative solutions at national level around the region.
"With their ideas, energy and ingenuity to develop new innovative solutions, young people have the power to improve and help build durable solutions for their communities."
Ms Risieta, of Vanuatu, says youth engagement is an integral part of any nation-building.
"Strengthening meaningful participation of young people and treating them as partners is not only the right thing to do, but the smart thing to do."
The director of the SPC's Regional Rights team, Miles Young, told the youth leaders that such dialogue helped answer the questions of how to effectively involve young Pacific Islanders in leadership, governance and human rights.
