Whereas globally, 90 percent of the world’s young people live in the developing world; Whereas children and youth bear the disproportionate burdens of poverty, which have been exacerbated by the COVID–19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis; Whereas half of the world’s population is under the age of 30 today, and thus engaging youth and emerging leaders is essential to achieving the United States most important foreign policy objectives; Whereas the perspectives of children and youth are frequently not prioritized in foreign assistance responses; Whereas the world’s countries with the greatest population of young people are vulnerable to the influence of donors whose funding does not align with American values; Whereas research has demonstrated when countries invest in their young people, substantial benefits can result, including reduced reliance on foreign assistance from governments like the United States, and boost national economic growth and global economic stability; Whereas, according to the National Security Strategy, the United States should not leave our future vulnerable to the whims of those who do not share our vision for a world that is free, open, prosperous, and secure. ; Whereas harnessing the potential of children and youth can create prosperous, safe, educated, stable, and resilient families, communities, and countries as well as reduce dependency on donor assistance; Whereas in contrast, inaction has the potential to cost the global economy $21,000,000,000,000 in lost lifetime earnings of today’s student generation as a result of pandemic school closures, compounding inequality and shortfalls leading to skills mismatches, and persistently high levels of young people not in employment, education, or training (the youth NEET rate) that threaten gross domestic product and economic growth; Whereas United States foreign assistance approaches have already yielded strong returns for young people, as well as the American taxpayers