Too often, young people are blamed for turning away from partnerships and parenthood. New global evidence released for World Population Day 2026 challenges this narrative. The Demographic Futures Survey, which reached nearly 109,000 young adults aged 18 to 39 across 73 countries, asked a simple but powerful question: what do young people want for their futures? The answer is clear. Young people are not rejecting partnership or parenthood. Rather, they are responding rationally to profound constraints on their ability to build the families they desire. For Nepal, these findings are particularly timely. The country is entering a new demographic era. Fertility has fallen rapidly, migration continues to reshape families and communities, and population ageing is beginning to accelerate. Understanding what young people want, and what stands in their way, is central to Nepal's development and demographic resilience. The survey findings are compelling. Eighty-eight per cent identified financial security as essential before becoming parents. Eighty-seven per cent cited stable employment. Eighty-five per cent pointed to emotional readiness. These are not expressions of changing values. They reflect the realities of building a family in an uncertain world. Across regions, optimism closely follows economic opportunity: where young people see viable pathways to decent work, confidence grows; where those pathways are unclear, it recedes. While the survey is global rather than nationally representative, its findings resonate strongly with what UNFPA hears from young people across Nepal. Young women and men consistently express aspirations for stable partnerships and parenthood, while citing barriers that include economic uncertainty, rising housing costs, inadequate childcare, and, for many young women, the fear that motherhood will curtail education or careers. Nepal's large-scale labour migration compounds these challenges, separating many young couples for prolonged periods through economic necessity rather than personal choice. Today, family formation is shaped as much by labour markets, migration and housing as by personal aspirations. This requires us to move beyond rhetoric. UNFPA is guided by a simple principle: every person should be able to decide freely and responsibly whether, when and with whom to form a family, without coercion, discrimination or unnecessary barriers. Our role is not to make those choices for people, but to help ensure they have the agency, opportunities and support to make those choices for themselves. Across Nepal, UNFPA works with government and partners to expand opportunities for young people through education, skills development, sexual and reproductive health services, and efforts to end child marriage and gender-based violence. These investments matter profoundly because demographic trends reflect not only individual preferences but also the economic and social conditions in which people live. Building demographic resilience is not about encouraging people to have more or fewer children. It is about ensuring they are genuinely able to have the families they aspire to, while helping societies adapt to demographic change. Achieving this requires action on three fronts. First, policies must address what young people themselves identify as most important: decent employment, affordable housing, quality sexual and reproductive health services, childcare, parental leave, and social protection that shield families from economic shocks. Policies must support, not pressure, responding to what young people need, not dictating what others think they should want. Second, countries must continue investing in young people's capabilities through comprehensive sexuality education, adolescent-friendly health services, market-relevant skills, and opportunities to participate fully in society. These are investments not only in individuals, but also in Nepal's future productivity and resilience. Third, gender equality must be central to demographic policy, not a parallel objective. The survey found persistent gender inequalities in attitudes towards caregiving and employment. When young women can pursue education and careers without sacrificing family aspirations, when care responsibilities are shared more equally, and when reproductive autonomy is protected, young people are better able to make choices that strengthen families and communities alike. These priorities are deeply interconnected. Employment security without reproductive health services leaves young women unable to exercise real choice. Reproductive health services without economic opportunity offer choice without a foundation. When policies work together, outcomes change. The evidence is now global and clear. Young people in Nepal and around the world are not rejecting family life; they are waiting for the conditions that allow them to build it. Encouragingly, nearly two-thirds of those surveyed remain optimistic about the future, reflecting confidence that, with the right investments and opportunities, they can achieve the lives they aspire to lead. For Nepal, this is about more than today's young people. As the country's demographic transition continues, the choices we make now will shape our ability to adapt to population ageing, migration and changing labour markets in the decades ahead. Nepal's demographic future will depend not only on how many young people it has, but on whether those young people have the opportunity to realize the lives and families they aspire to. World Population Day reminds us that demographic change is not destiny. The future will be shaped by whether we invest in young people's rights, capabilities and choices today. That is the partnership UNFPA is committed to in Nepal: helping the country anticipate demographic change and turn it into an opportunity for more inclusive and sustainable development. Sriram Haridass is the Country Representative, UNFPA in Nepal