Sangguniang Kabataan

The Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) (Youth Council) is the governing body in every chapter of the Katipunan ng Kabataan (Youth Federation). Each barangay in the Philippines is mandated by law to have its own chapter of the Katipunan ng Kabataan, aging from 15 to 21 years old who resides in their respective barangays for at least 6months and registered in the Sangguniang Kabataan, or in the official list in the custody of the barangay secretary. It is the local youth program and projects implementation partner of the government. The Katipunan ng Kabataan members elect their officers known as Sangguniang Kabataan which serves as the local youth legislature in the village. The Sangguniang Kabataan is an off-shoot of * the KB or the Kabataang Barangay(Village Youth) which was abolished when the Local Government Code of 1991 was enacted. Many say, "Walang kwenta ang SK" (SK is useless) because the officials are only after the benefits and honoraria. They really do not serve the youth.

The Sangguniang Kabataan is the youth legislature in every local village or community. They are in the age bracket of 15 to 18 years old during the time of election. They initiate policies, programs and projects for the development of youth in their respective political territories. The Chairman/President of the Sangguniang Kabataan acts as the Chief Executive of the Sanggunian (Council) while the Kagawad (Councilor) as the legislative council. The Kagawads approve resolutions of the Sanggunian and appropriates the money allotted to the council, a share in the revenue of the Barangay.

The Chairman automatically sits in the Sangguniang Barangay (Village Council) as ex-officio member. He or She automatically gets chairmanship of the Committee on Youth and Sports, one of the standing committees in the village council. Every Sangguniang Kabataan is then federated into municipal and city federations, then city and municipal federations are federated into a provincial federation.