
ADDIS ABABA- Youth unemployment rates continue to present a challenge for long-term employment prospects and it is a particular problem in Africa, said ILO Research Director.
Richard Samans, ILO Research Director, highlighted at the launch of the report in Geneva Wednesday “Africa’s unique issue of youth unemployment”, “Worldwide, young people that is people in the workforce of working age, but less than 24 years old they have an unemployment rate three-and-a-half times that of working age adults.
The number of working-age persons in Sub-Saharan Africa increased by 53 million in 2023 compared to 2019, and the ILO estimated that this number would rise by an additional 14 million in 2024, as ILO reported.
“Part of the problem here is that in Africa, the number of youths who are not in education, employment, and training is high and is going up quite strongly. So, this is also a worrying development in the case of Africa,” he said.
The ILO’s World Employment and Social Outlook Trends: 2024 (WESO Trends) finds Africa’s GDP growth is estimated to have been 3.8 per cent in 2022, following the turmoil of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. In 2023, growth is expected to have slowed to 3.1 per cent due to various factors, including the conflict in Ukraine and its impact on commodity markets.
Job creation is keeping pace with the rising labour force but not all those in employment are in decent and productive jobs. Informal employment continues to dominate in Africa at 86.5 per cent, underscoring the urgency to improve job quality and reduce working poverty.
According to the statement bring together governments, employers and workers to drive a human-centered approach to the future of work through employment creation, rights at work, social protection and social dialogue should give attention.
It also pointed out that a significant portion of the global workforce remains in informal employment, while stressing that key concerns include worsening income inequality and the impact of inflation on real incomes, especially in G20 countries.
BY ESSEYE MENGISTE
The Ethiopian Herald January 14/2024