U.N. Secretary-General's visit
Investing in quality jobs for young people
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon took part in an interactive dialogue on youth employment during his visit to ILO headquarters in Geneva. The session focused on the importance of investing in quality jobs for youth, particularly those living in developing countries.
The event was an opportunity for the Secretary-General and the ILO to engage with young people, for whom employment is a prime aspiration and life goal.
Over the next decade over 600 million jobs will need to be created, about 400 million just to keep up with new entrants to the labour market, mostly young people. In developing countries, the challenge is not only creating jobs but ensuring quality jobs for youth who are often under-employed and working in the informal economy.
Based on studies recently conducted by the ILO in 20 low- and middle-income countries, three-quarters of young workers aged 15-29 are currently engaged in the informal economy, either as wage earners or necessity-driven self-employed. The risk of informality is even higher for young women. For these young people it is difficult to make a good start on the labour market and that they are exposed to a vicious circle characterized by low-quality jobs and inter-generational transmission of working poverty.
The analysis of the statistical data collected by the ILO through the first ever school-to-work transition surveys that low levels of education and poor quality jobs remain a stumbling block to development. This is mirrored by a recently-launched ILO report that draws from evidence from over 140 developing countries and finds that a common factor amongst those countries that have achieved higher per capita income and sustained growth was quality jobs.
The event will highlight some of these issues and illustrate good practice stemming from youth employment interventions.
Background
Young people are facing an unprecedented jobs crisis: over 74 million are unemployed worldwide and a further 228 million are working poor. Currently, one out of two young people in the labour force is either poor or unemployed.Over the next decade over 600 million jobs will need to be created, about 400 million just to keep up with new entrants to the labour market, mostly young people. In developing countries, the challenge is not only creating jobs but ensuring quality jobs for youth who are often under-employed and working in the informal economy.
Based on studies recently conducted by the ILO in 20 low- and middle-income countries, three-quarters of young workers aged 15-29 are currently engaged in the informal economy, either as wage earners or necessity-driven self-employed. The risk of informality is even higher for young women. For these young people it is difficult to make a good start on the labour market and that they are exposed to a vicious circle characterized by low-quality jobs and inter-generational transmission of working poverty.
The analysis of the statistical data collected by the ILO through the first ever school-to-work transition surveys that low levels of education and poor quality jobs remain a stumbling block to development. This is mirrored by a recently-launched ILO report that draws from evidence from over 140 developing countries and finds that a common factor amongst those countries that have achieved higher per capita income and sustained growth was quality jobs.
The event will highlight some of these issues and illustrate good practice stemming from youth employment interventions.