INTERGENERATIONAL EQUITY

July 2024

In its latest discussion paper, the Federal Youth Advisory Board (Bundesjugendkuratorium – BJK) calls for a debate on the rights of young people in an ageing society. The expert committee would like to initiate an urgently needed public discourse on the “need to  structurally safeguard the rights and interests of the younger generation while striving for intergenerational equity.” Germany’s population is aging, with pensioners rapidly becoming the largest voter group which will decide on the allocation of important resources.

To what extent can such a democracy be intergenerationally equitable and future-oriented?

Rethinking Intergenerational Equity

The BJK is therefore advocating to politically update the concept of intergenerational equity. This entails discussing the position that the younger generation takes in politics and developing structural procedures to guarantee a minimum standard that cannot be undercut in previously neglected areas such as education.

The BJK is also proposing a debate on the idea of basic rights for younger people that would be removed from political competition, similar to “minority protection”. A number of developments can be interpreted in this sense, such as the demand to include children’s rights in the Basic Law, the legal right to early childhood education and all-day care, but also several rulings by the Federal Constitutional Court, in particular on the right to education and on the modification of the Climate Protection Act.

In order for the younger generation to be able to steer society through challenging times and for their rights to be sustainably secured, there should be a return to the central idea of the intergenerational social contract.

Mandate and Composition of the BJK

The Federal Youth Advisory Board (Bundesjugendkuratorium – BJK) advises the German Federal Government on key issues of child and youth welfare, as well as on cross-cutting topics in child and youth policy. The BJK consists of up to 15 experts from the fields of politics, administration, associations and academia. The members are appointed by the Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth for the duration of a parliamentary term.

The expert commission is supported by the Child and Youth Policy Unit, based at the German Youth Institute (Deutsches Jugendinstitut – DJI). The Director of the DJI, Professor Dr Sabine Walper, is a permanent guest of the Federal Youth Advisory Board.

Photo credit: Markus Spiske / unsplash

Guest article in the Süddeutsche Zeitung “The Forgotten” (€) by Prof. Dr Aladin El-Mafaalani and Baro Vicenta Ra Gabbert