When the UN marked International Youth Day on Monday 12 August, the challenges facing young people were firmly placed in the spotlight, none more so than the fact that nearly 290 million young people are out of work globally, almost a quarter of the world's youth.
Barclays and UNICEF's Building Young Futures partnership couldn't come at a more important time. They are working together to help tackle youth unemployment by enabling disadvantaged young people, between the ages of 15 and 25, to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to set up their own business or find a job.
The programme is running in six countries: Brazil, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Uganda and Zambia, and will work with national governments to extend the programmes to many more young people. UNICEF programme managers in Zambia and Uganda share some of the lessons they have learned in developing the programme:
Annie Kamwendo, UNICEF Zambia
If you live in a small village in Zambia, hours of walking or a prohibitively expensive drive away from the nearest town, your options for possible work can seem very slim. Entering the world of work can seem like a fantasy, and many young people simply fall into whatever work they can find.
The McKinsey report 'Education to Employment' early this year identified a major disconnect between the education system around the world and what employers want. The report suggests that stakeholders need better data to make informed choices. Young people need information about career options and potential pathways.
In Zambia, the Building Young Futures programme is putting exactly this recommendation into practice. The programme reaches out to young people in vulnerable communities, providing enterprise skills training, mentoring and work placements. But crucially, alongside of this, we are also working to map out the specific economic opportunities that are available for young people in the areas where they live. The information we collect is then shared with young people during training to help them in their work planning, with the aim of enabling them to make the most of these opportunities.
A few weeks ago I joined a group of NGOs, government and business people who have been meeting regularly in order to identify the potential pathways currently available for young people in the area of Mansa, in the north of Zambia. This mapping workshop was chaired by a government official who stressed the importance of getting the work right in order to achieve the 2015 millennium development goals.
A range of opportunities were identified, with potential networks to help young people access them. For example, farming as a business is a good option for many young people in Mansa with a particular prioritisation on fish, pig and poultry farming. We also identified the opportunity for entrepreneurship and several institutions that are ready to support young people looking to set up their own enterprises. Alongside this, we recognised that there is an opportunity to develop apprenticeships with the hospitality businesses in the area.
It was very clear that there are several opportunities out there and all we needed was to find and tap into them. The next step is giving the young people the skills they require to take advantage of these opportunities and open new doors that will change their lives for the better.
Robby Muhumuza, UNICEF Uganda
Life is incredibly tough for many young people looking for work in Uganda, which has one of the youngest and fastest-growing populations in the world, along with high poverty and unemployment rates for those aged between 15 and 25.
Many young people drop out of school at early stages of their education, mostly as a result of lack of school fees. The school curriculum is mainly theoretical and academic, rather than giving students practical skills that they can readily use to employ themselves or get employed in a vocation such as construction, tailoring, motor repairing and catering. The jobs available for those with limited education are very low-paid and usually involve working as housemaids, cooks, waiting staff, bartenders or labourers on farms.
The majority of the young people who join Building Young Futures are poor, vulnerable and unemployed. Most have limited education; some are orphans, some are single mothers. Because they live in rural remote villages or on the fringes of upcountry towns, they lack exposure to the opportunities to gain skills training. They find it difficult to acquire capital or bank loans to start their own businesses since banks and micro finance institutions do not consider them for lending.
These young people are very much aware of their current predicament and are very keen to change and improve their socio-economic status by working or setting up their own businesses. They are highly motivated to learn and put into practice what they will be taught through taking part in the Building Young Futures programme.
They will receive training in the skills to help them survive and maintain a positive mindset. With the support of Barclays staff, they will also be trained in financial literacy and small business management to learn the importance of budgeting, saving, marketing, banking, and business planning. Some will be matched with experienced coaches and mentors from their community.
UNICEF has also set up solar-powered computers with internet access at community youth centres, equipped with offline digital content on financial literacy and small business management. Young people can also find out about business opportunities, and prices and markets for the goods and services they are providing.
This is a programme that could transform the lives of thousands of young people and could enable them to build a bright future that otherwise could have been a life of poverty and deprivation.
For more information visit:
www.barclays.com/buildingyoungfutures
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