Youth for a Sustainable World (YSW) traces its roots to the year 2000, when it was established as Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung (DSW) Kenya—the Kenya country office of the German Foundation for World Population, an international development organization founded in 1991 to empower young people and communities in low- and middle-income countries.
Founded after Ethiopia and alongside country offices in Uganda and Tanzania, DSW Kenya was created to deliver transformative programs closer to the communities that needed them most. From the outset, our mission was clear: to unlock the potential of young people through initiatives in sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), gender equality, advocacy, youth economic empowerment, and capacity development.
Initially operating from a single office in Nairobi, the organisation rapidly expanded to include three regional offices in Mombasa, Kakamega, and Embu to support community-level HIV prevention interventions.
Over the years, we built strong youth-led structures nationwide, positioning young people as key stakeholders in policy dialogue and advocacy for SRHR. To strengthen this approach, we developed two flagship models:
Our growth enabled the launch of high-impact advocacy and accountability initiatives, including annual reviews of national and sub-national budgets to promote family planning resourcing and the establishment of dedicated family planning budget lines. We empowered young people to assess the quality and inclusivity of health services, engaging directly with policymakers and providers to enhance transparency and responsiveness.
