The ASEAN Youth Summit 2026 will be held at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported Tuesday. 

In partnership with the National Youth Commission (NYC), and support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Australian Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the youth summit led by DSWD on 5 and 6 of August. 

“As part of its chairship of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC), the DSWD wants to promote an enabling environment for young people to participate and strengthen their competencies to become responsible users of artificial intelligence (AI), new media, and other emerging technologies,” Asst. Secretary Irene Dumlao said. 

The two-day summit, according to the agency, aims to provide a platform to empower young people and strengthen their competencies in digital literacy, online ethics, and responsible innovation.

Recognized issues expected to     in the summit include the proliferation of fake news, online scams, cyberbullying, privacy concerns, and the growing impact of social media on mental health.

“These are real issues affecting young people not only in the ASEAN region, but globally.”

“To address these, we want to promote digital resiliency among the youth, with the ultimate goal of helping them distinguish facts from misinformation, protect themselves online, understand their digital rights, and use technology responsibly and ethically,” Dumlao said. 

Various ASEAN Member States comprising around 300 participants including youth leaders, institutions, development partners, and representatives from local youth sectors are expected to attend the event.

The summit is part of the major activities of the DSWD as chairman of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community with the support from the Social Protection, Inclusion, and Gender Equality (SPRING) Program, the Joint SDG Fund, and the Embassy of the United States of America.