 | The International Labour Office estimates that some 88 million young women and men are unemployed throughout the world, accounting for 47 percent of all the 186 million unemployed persons globally. |
Many more young people work long hours for low pay, struggling to eke out a living in the informal economy. There are an estimated 59 million young people between 15 and 17 years of age who are engaged in hazardous forms of work. Young people actively seeking to participate in the labor market are two to three times more likely than older generations to find themselves unemployed. One billion people will become of working age within the next decade. While rapid globalization and technological change offer new opportunities for productive work and incomes for the lucky few, for many working age young people, these trends increase the vulnerability inherent in the transition from childhood to adulthood. Across the planet, millions of young women and men are failing to gain an entry into the workforce, and the disadvantage suffered by young women is greater. The vast majority of jobs available to youth are low paid, insecure, and with few benefits or prospects for advancement. The ChallengeFor a growing number of young people, employment may not provide an income sufficient to cover basic necessities. In developing countries, a rising number of young people work in the informal economy where they earn low wages and are often subjected to poor or even exploitative working conditions. Many young people work in what is know the intermediary zone – engaged in casual employment, get by through enforced self-employment (even begging), are underemployed or hold a variety of part-time jobs. Youth unemployment can lead to marginalization, exclusion, frustration, low self-esteem and sometimes to behavior that imposes a burden on society. During the Millennium Summit, as part of the Millennium Declaration, world leaders resolved to "develop and implement strategies that give young people everywhere a real chance to find decent and productive work." Youth employment is both an integral part of the Millennium Declaration, an important target in its own right in the Millennium Development Goals and a key contribution to meeting other Millennium Goals, including those relating to poverty reduction. Young People Have a Role Young people are asking that their voices be heard, that their issues be addressed and that their roles be recognized. Rather than being viewed as a target group for which employment must be found, they want to be accepted as partners for development, helping to chart a common course and shaping the future for everyone. The expected inflow of young people into the labor market, rather than being viewed as a problem, should be recognized as presenting an enormous opportunity and potential for economic and social development. Young people as such should be viewed as an asset, not a threat and that in relation to the job market young people are the solution, whilst unemployment is the problem, not vice versa. Policy Implications Traditionally international initiatives focused on the issue of youth employment have expressed a commitment to engage youth groups as equal partners in the policy making process. All too often these promises have in reality meant little more than "consultation" and the resulting policy has been a perceived notion of 'what is best' for young people. Such policy-making has led to the implementation of policy that has consistently failed to address the underlying concerns of young people and causes of youth unemployment and subsequently the problem has continued unchecked. With young people particularly at risk at being unemployed – and with the negative consequences that this lack of employment and regular income may entail – national youth policies must give consideration to employment issues, just as national employment policies must give particular consideration to youth employment and lack hereof.  For more information, please visit Youth Microfinance & Livelihood Programs
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