The Global College at the University of Winnipeg and the Youth Employment Network (YEN) at the International Labour Organization are collaborating on a 3 year program to place five young Canadian professionals in YEN Lead Countries to assist in promoting youth employment as a major development issue. YEN Associates will work with partner institutions in Senegal, Indonesia, Ghana, Tanzania and Kenya. The program is sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency's (CIDA) Youth Employment Strategy.
Youth Employment is an increasingly important issue on a global scale. Over the next 10 years, the world will witness an unprecedented youth bulge with over 1 billion young people entering global labour markets. Recent economic conditions indicate that the supply of jobs will likely shrink, while many young people will not have the skills and experience needed to attain what jobs are available. Governments and partners in the UN system recognized the urgency of this challenge by setting up of the Youth Employment Network (YEN) in 2001.
The YEN/ Global College Associate Program aims to foster Global Citizenship through the YEN Associates’ engagement in their local and global communities. It strives to create a platform for peer-to-peer empowerment through combating youth employment issues and challenges. Associates gain valuable professional development experience on assignment with YEN partner agencies wherein they develop necessary skills and capacities to further their careers as effective actors in international development.
While the long term objective of the YEN Associate program is to increase the participation of young Canadians working in international development, the immediate objective is to provide youth employment institutions with a skilled labour force to assist them in delivering their work plans.
YEN Associates Blog:
http://lepnet.org/group/yen-associates
Host institutions:
1) International Labour Organization, Dakar, Senegal
2) International Labour Organzation, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
3) International Labour Organization, Jakarta, Indonesia
4) International Labour Organization, Nairobi, Kenya
5) National Youth Employment Program, Accra, Ghana
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