Youth Engagement Strategy (YES)
Issues, Challenges and Opportunities
YASIN JANJUA
CENTRE FOR POVERTY REDUCTION AND
SOCIAL POLICY DEVELOPMENT (CPRSPD)
Background
 Demographic Dividend
 Almost 35% in the age range of 15-24 years
 63% of the population below 25 years
 Growing concerns about
 Radicalization
 Joining extremist terror networks
 Aggression and Violence
 Lack of Citizenship among Pakistani Youth
Youth Engagement Strategy
Pakistani Youth: Issues and
Challenges
 Economic Slowdown
 Lack of employment
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opportunities
Youth demographic bulge
Low literacy among youth
No life or vocational skills
No career counseling
Lack of citizenship
Economy and Youth at Risk
Leveraging from Risk to
Strength
 Youth Trajectories
 It’s my life (harnessing
potential)
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Opening Windows of
Opportunities
Facilitating Youth
Entrepreneurship
Youth and Pakistan’s Economy
ISSUES AND CHALLENGES
Demographic Dividend
Shriveled Economy
Issues
 Growth Rate Declined
 From 5% on average to less than 2% in 2010
 Slowdown in employment growth
 Poor perception of global investor
 Terrorism /Bad investment climate
 Low tax to GDP ratio
 Declining exports and FDI
 Increasing debt burden
 Global Economic Shocks
Issues
 Education - NER 57%
 13-15% completes secondary education
 1% of total labor force has technical skills
 Youth entrants in labor force
 With no education
 No skills
 Missing Facilities / Markets
 Social and Economic justice
 Economy lacks capacity to absorb
Challenges
 Large Informal Sector
 Formal Sector shrinking
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27.2% in 2007-08 to 26.7% in 2008-09
 Outmoded job market entry mechanism
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Informal training under ‘Ustad Shagird’ arrangement
Immersion in family Businesses
Formal training in vocational and technical training institutes and
short-term programs
On-Job-Training(OJT)
Formal apprenticeship
 Socio – Cultural Influences on job market
 No Career counseling mechanisms
Pathways to skill acquisition and job market
Illiterate
School
dropout
s
Literate
Through Family
Pool of
prospective
trainees for
informal
skill
acquisitions
and job
market
Through Family and
Acquaintances
Family Business in
Informal and
Formal Sectors
On-the-job Training
Through Friends
and Peers
Apprenticeship
Through Mentors /
Local Influentials
(Ustad-Shagird) in
Informal and
Formal sectors
On Competitive
Basis through open
recruitment process
Public and Private
Sector
Economy and Youth at Risk
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Increasing youth dependency
Lower economic growth
Youth share in employment 40.9%
Youth Contribution to GDP 18-28% (Avg 23%)
Increasing unemployment
Results
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Redundancy of skills
Lower future wages
Poverty
Vulnerability
Aggression and violence
Lower prospects of well being
 Immediate need to tackle these issues, otherwise
Cluelessness and Helplessness
Leveraging from Risk to
Strength
ENGAGING YOUTH
UNLOCKING THEIR POTENTIAL
Objectives
 Understanding needs
 Provision of community infrastructure for youth
 Education and Skills
 Economic Opportunities
 Globalized & Socialized Youth
Understanding Youth Trajectories
 Trajectory of learning and life skill development
 Trajectory of transitioning form learning to work
 Trajectories of citizenship and responsibilities
 Trajectories of financial independence and autonomy
in relation to ones family and married life
Its My Life
Source: Sandra Franke (2010)
Research on Youth Issues
 Youth dependency,
 Youth Education and Skill Development
 Youth Employment, Livelihood, and
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Entrepreneurship
Youth Social Capital and Networking
Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health
Youth Violence and Suicide Prevention
Youth Drug Prevention
Youth Security and Justice Issues
Impart Skills
 Don’t Consider youth restless rather harness potential
 Don’t treat them as problem rather strength
 Impart Life Skills
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building team spirit
Motivation
sharing ideas
problem solving skills
conflict resolution
Assertiveness
communication and networking
managing workload
time management
decision making
and graduating from fellowship to leadership
Opening Windows of Opportunities
 Access to Quality
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Education
Access to Health Services
Access to Finance
Access to Markets
Feedback in Policy
Making
Participation in
Governance,
Accountability and
Compliance
Facilitating Entrepreneurship
 business environment for youth
 business skill training,
 mentorship
 access to finance.
 re-zoning of spaces for commercial and private use
 markets, roads, transportations
 social and economic networking forums,
 enforcement of copy right laws,
 dispute resolution systems,
 and venture capitals for ambitious start ups.
 Government
 Facilitator -Rules and Regulations
 Provision of missing facilities
 Provider of public community infrastructures
New Development Approach
Recommendations
 It’s your life and we want to hear from you