Empowering a Media-Literate Youth in SAARC: A Path to Resilience, Accountability, and Democratic Rene

Abstract

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)—comprising Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, and the Maldives—faces critical threats to democratic stability due to corruption, authoritarianism, divisive ideologies, and the manipulation of digital media. This paper proposes a regionally tailored media literacy initiative aimed at equipping youth with critical thinking and analytical skills to assess and interpret media content effectively. Media literacy is presented as a strategic tool to combat misinformation, enhance civic engagement, and facilitate sustainable democratic reform.Drawing upon two newly developed conceptual frameworks—the United Youth Resilience Theory and the Collective Accountability and Transparency Theory—the study explores the transformative potential of youth-led movements, with a particular focus on recent activism in Bangladesh. Five case studies from diverse South Asian contexts illustrate how media-literate youth have challenged authoritarian narratives and promoted social justice. The paper concludes with actionable recommendations for embedding media literacy into educational systems, promoting regional cohesion, and fostering transparency and accountability. Although grounded in the SAARC context, the proposed framework offers wider applicability to regions such as Africa, the Middle East, Myanmar, and Ukraine, where youth-driven democratic efforts confront analogous challenges.