All over the world, more and more children like us want to take action on issues that matter to them. There are now more places where we can speak up, in person and online, and more adults are listening. Sadly, lots of children still don’t get a say in big decisions that affect their countries.

One of the main reasons for this is that governments don’t provide enough money for us to participate in ways that work for us. Joining Forces* wanted to understand how government spending, also called public budgeting, affects children’s participation. They talked to children in different countries to find out what keeps them from taking part in making public decisions and what could be improved.