African Regional Workshop on structural transformation

LIVINGSTONE (ILO News) – The Youth Employment Programme of the International Labour Organization (ILO) organized a regional workshop on the theme “what works to boost labour demand for youth” in the context of structural transformation, in Livingstone, Zambia.

“We must place productive employment & Decent Work at the heart of macro-economic & development policies in the African region”, said ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Africa, Aeneas Chapinga Chuma underscoring that “the youth are not asking for charity. They are looking for opportunities”.

The objective of this event was to foster peer learning and exchange of effective, replicable and scalable demand-side solutions that promote structural transformation and, in the longer run, a prospective for getting more young men and women in the region into productive employment.

“Youth employment is an urgent priority for the Africa region; we must all do more & better to meet their expectations”, Chuma stated while highlighting that in sub-Saharan Africa, 2/3 of youth remain in working poverty, living with their families below US$2 per day.

According to ILO estimates, from 2015 - 2030, 5 million new jobs will need to be created every year just to keep up with the growth of the labour force.

“Responding to the challenges of the African region involves supporting youth entrepreneurship, economic empowerment, promoting education and training that correspond to the real needs of the economic sectors, and fostering new partnerships, particularly with the growing private sector in the region”, the ILO Head for Africa concluded.

The workshop took brought together representatives from Governments, Employers’ and Workers’ organizations from 10 countries namely: Benin, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo, Uganda and Zambia as well as delegates from civil society organisations and the United Nations System.

The interregional event was part of a series of ILO “What Works in Youth Employment” Knowledge Sharing Events and was designed to facilitate learning and dialogue through evidence-based good practices.