Young people have felt the brunt of the multiple-crises that have evolved since 2008′s financial meltdown. Record-high unemployment levels, popular protests and the prospect of a lost generation have not yet elicited a coordinated and sufficient response.

The global youth unemployment rate is projected to reach almost 13 percent in 2013 — the equivalent of 73 million young people, according to a new ILO report on Global Employment Trends for Youth. This is nearly the same rate as it was at the height of the economic crisis. Based on current projections, it is not expected to decline before 2018.

The situation varies between the developed and the developing world, but no country is immune.

In developed countries, many young people have given up looking for a job altogether or have lowered their expectations to settle for any job they can find. In addition, more and more young people are stuck with part-time or temporary contracts. Secure jobs that were once the norm for previous generations are a distant dream for many of today’s youth.

The magnitude of the numbers suggests that we are looking at a generation at risk; millions of unemployed or underutilized young people, whose period of “youthful” dependency on parents and the state is being prolonged.

Through a partnership with The MasterCard Foundation, the ILO has designed and implemented innovative research in developing countries that goes beyond standard labour market indicators, to look at issues such as irregular employment, underutilization, job quality and satisfaction and labour market transitions. Findings from these school-to-work transition surveys reveal that young people face far more difficult challenges to entering the labour market than published unemployment figures suggest.

In the countries surveyed, up to two thirds of young people were either unemployed; working in irregular, poor-quality, low-wage jobs, frequently in the informal economy; or neither in the labour market nor in education or training. The findings demonstrate that competition for scarce jobs forces under-educated young people in developing countries into further vulnerability. Young people who live in rural areas or who are migrating to urban areas are especially affected. Without sustainable job creation and better access to education and skills training, progress on reducing poverty is at risk.

Creative and wide-ranging solutions are needed

The global economic and social crisis urgently requires collective action from public policy, the private sector, trade unions and other actors. Globally, we need a coordinated macroeconomic response that puts jobs first, especially for young people. Growth does not happen without people working.

In parallel, at the national level, a set of youth employment specific measures are required. These include interventions to ensure young people have the skills sought by employers; that small and medium sized enterprises have access to credit, allowing them to employ more young workers; and that young people have the same rights, working conditions and social protection as adult workers.

In countries with high numbers of unemployed youth, comprehensive packages of employment programmes and services that target disadvantaged young persons have generally done better than single measures. Successful interventions combine education and training with work-experience and job-placement support, including incentives for employers to hire disadvantaged youth, such as wage subsidies, tax cuts or social security exemptions for a limited period.

One example of a proven approach is youth employment guarantees, which provide skills’ training, work experience, job-search support and/or a job placement. A study conducted in 2011 in Sweden, showed that unemployed youth, who benefited from such a guarantee, were able to find a job faster than those who had not. In Austria, 63 percent of young people found a job within a year of participating in a similar programme in 2010.

Apprenticeships are also a powerful instrument to achieve impact and scale on youth employment, reduce the mismatch of skills and promote efficient transitions from the world of education to the world of employment. The training initiatives that have proved most relevant to the jobs market are characterized by close collaboration between public policy, enterprises, social partners, training providers and young people.

In developing countries where young people may be working but in subsistence jobs in the informal economy, integrated strategies and programmes for employment and livelihoods are needed. Interventions can include training in literacy, occupational and entrepreneurial skills, as well as provision of support to youth-led micro and small enterprises and cooperatives to successfully access credit, non-financial services and markets. These measures can help foster a virtuous circle of improved productivity, better working conditions and sustainable enterprises.

There is no one-size-fits all solution but young people the world over share the same motivation — to find a decent job so they can support themselves and their families. They are the engine of innovation and growth for the future but they are in urgent need of a “jump start” from the right kind of policy mix.

Learning Tailored to Africa’s Future explores how we have an unprecedented opportunity to work with Africa’s 600 million young people to redefine education and create important linkages between education and work.

This video profiles the  students who received the Wings to Fly scholarships and provides highlights of the event.

Click here to view the embedded video.

“As young African leaders, we need patience, but every day we must do what we can. I realized that waiting for others to solve my problems was not going to happen so I worked on my own solutions.” This piece of wisdom was shared with me by Joseph Munyabanza. He fled the Democratic Republic of the Congo when he was seven years old and grew up in the Kyangwali refugee camp in Uganda. Despite many hardships, when he was 14 years old, Joseph and some friends started an organization, CORBUWAS, to support the education of young people in the camp. Joseph also pursued his own education. He won a scholarship and graduated from African Leadership Academy in South Africa. Today, he is a MasterCard Foundation Scholar studying medicine at Westminster University with dreams of making a difference in Africa.

How do individuals change the course of their lives and emerge from grinding poverty with dignity?

Joseph embodies the resilience and indomitable spirit I often see in young people in Africa. When I reflect on his extraordinary story, it reinforces the simple belief that guides us at The MasterCard Foundation:  That is, each of us has the potential to change our own life and the lives of those around us. It only takes an opportunity. Hence, our Foundation’s vision is a world where all people have opportunities to learn and to prosper.

We focus on expanding access to two basic tools that people living in poverty require to improve their own lives: financial services such as savings, business credit, and crop insurance; and education to enable young people to acquire marketable skills so they can enter the workforce. Change occurs when people have opportunities to learn, acquire skills, build assets, deploy capital to start a business, and create social networks. More than just acquiring knowledge, people also gain the confidence to pursue their dreams.

It sounds so simple. Yet, how do we create opportunities for millions of Josephs? Poverty is a complex problem. It tests our values and our imagination to interrupt its pernicious inter-generational cycle. Philanthropy is not a solution, but a catalyst for change. Deployed well, it complements the scaling power of markets and public policy.

The MasterCard Foundation was created in 2006. Early on, we made strategic choices about where, with whom, and how we would work. We decided to work in close collaboration with partner organizations in Africa, the second-fastest growing region in the world that also shoulders the highest burden of poverty. Eighty percent of the population is unbanked and enrollment in secondary and higher education lags well behind the rest of the world. In order to sustain the continent’s growth and make that growth equitable, people will need increased access to financial services and education.

We collaborate with African and other organizations with a history and commitment to the region, and with the capacity to innovate. We also decided to invest deeply in a smaller number of partners and to take a long-term view on how change happens. On average, projects we fund run over five years, and our largest initiatives extend to 10 years. These projects are accompanied by a significant investment in evaluation and a commitment to measure change in order to learn what is working and what should be improved. As of December 2012, we have committed $830 million to 75 projects.

We have learned that how we collaborate with others matters as much as what we do. Some lessons we have learned over the past six years include:

Listen to those well-placed to understand the problem. Listen carefully to microfinance clients, young people, staff of partner organizations, and community leaders, about how they would design and implement solutions. Create space for people closest to the problem to lead change. Philanthropy has a role to empower them and ensure their voices are heard. But African leadership, ownership of solutions, and the capacity to execute are essential.

Make learning an intentional part of how we work. Before beginning a project, understand what matters and agree on how it will be measured. Recognize that wrong assumptions, false starts, and course corrections are part of the learning journey. A measure of learning is whether we are making new mistakes, not the same old ones.

Align with those who share your values. Invest time upfront to understand an organization, its people, its values and culture, its unique strengths, how it makes decisions, and how we might learn and solve problems together.

One example of how we apply these lessons is through our Youth Think Tank. This is a group of inspirational young men and women who have participated in projects that we support across Africa. They advise us on strategies, provide ideas on how we expand opportunities for education and employment, as well as review proposals under consideration. One of them, Olivia Kyomuhendo from Uganda advises, “Emphasize creativity and innovation in young people because creativity and innovation will lead to entrepreneurship.”

Today, through the work of our partners thousands of young people are being educated and equipped with the skills they need to be successfully employed. Young women are starting their businesses with new expertise and capital. More African entrepreneurs are implementing their ideas. Currently, the projects we support benefit close to five million people in 49 countries.

Perhaps change happens when organizations like the African Leadership Academy listen and respond to the aspirations of people they serve like Joseph Munyabanza. When speaking about his future, Joseph told me, “I feel excited about my dreams for my country and my continent. I accept the challenges and the responsibilities of making these dreams come true.” At The MasterCard Foundation, we share his excitement about Africa and are excited to be a part of the social and economic transformation of the continent led by leaders like Joseph.

EARTH accomplished this by instilling four skill and value sets in students:

• Technical and scientific knowledge,
• Entrepreneurial skills and spirit,
• Social and environmental responsibility, and
• Ethics and positive values.  

“We tell professors, ‘You’re not here to finish your latest chapter; you are here to TEACH!” says EARTH’s President, José Zaglul. The MasterCard Foundation and partners got to attend classes, experience EARTH’s extremely thorough admissions process, learn how to measure solar energy, and tour animal farms, organic farms, urban farms, as well as a banana plantation and packing plant.

EARTH University has a clear measurable impact: With 1,800 graduates, on average, every graduate creates four new jobs and 23 percent own their own profitable businesses. Joaquín Víquez is an EARTH alumni. He is currently CEO of his own company, VioGas, and a lecturer at EARTH. Joaquín eloquently summarized what the students saw and felt at EARTH: “We went out to work in fields on our very first day. You knew right away if it was for you or not. EARTH professors told us, ‘You must be a change maker; you must change your community.’ They said it so much that you believed it and you started to do it.”

Thank you to EARTH University students, faculty, and staff for a wonderful experience.

Over the holidays, in an independent supplement to USA Today, the voices of four YouthSave account holders came to the forefront. The special edition was focused on “Investing in Asia”, and the YouthSave participants’ insights were highlighted in a questionnaire. In the piece, two girls and two boys aged 12 to 15 living in Nepal revealed meaningful financial aspirations and captured how saving was important to achieving these goals.

“I am saving for my education. I want to be a nurse. If I save now, there will be less of a financial burden on my parents for my education.” Manika Adhikari (quote from MediaPlanet supplement)

In Nepal, there are around 5 million Nepalis between the ages of 12 to 18; however, only about four bank branches exist for every 100,000 adults. YouthSave research has revealed that children in families earning less than $2 a day are not only saving but also making substantial financial decisions for their future.

“My parents may not have the money when I require it for my extra needs, such as tuition and fees for additional classes that I want to take. If I have my own savings, there will be no need to ask my parents for money.”  Sameer Dhungana (quote from MediaPlanet supplement)

The publication worked to capture the voices of four youth, and the YouthSave project has an extensive research effort underway to better understand the financial lives of tens of thousands of youth in four different countries over the course of the project. The findings about the complex development impact of savings on youth are just coming to light, but already as Pramod Tamang simply said in the questionnaire: “I feel more secure about my dreams now.”

This video shares the story of how The MasterCard Foundation seeks to foster collaboration and a sense of community among our partners. It allows us to also be inspired by the outstanding young leaders who will contribute to the social and economic transformation of Africa.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Patrick Awuah, Ashesi’s Founder and President, was recently awarded the Haas Leading Through Innovation Award. This short video clip gives a glimpse into his vision, the kind of education students receive, and energy at Ashesi’s campus.  

Click here to view the embedded video.

The word “Anzisha” comes from the Swahili word for “initiative”. In 2010, African Leadership Academy and The MasterCard Foundation announced the Anzisha Prize, and together embarked on a journey to identify entrepreneurial youth in Africa who are transforming their communities and the continent. What an amazing two years it has been. 

In 2011, eight inspiring Anzisha Fellows were selected from a pool of 180 young entrepreneurs in 23 African countries. This year, we are thrilled to welcome 13 exceptional Fellows into the Anzisha network of young African innovators. These trailblazers, selected from over 270 entrepreneurs in 23 countries, have launched enterprises ranging from agriculture and consumer products to energy and technology initiatives. Collectively, the 2012 Anzisha Fellows have impacted thousands of lives across Africa.

One exciting addition to the Anzisha Prize program was this year’s ‘Anzisha Prize Tour’, which sought to build on the momentum from the Prize. We met over 3,000 young people in nine countries, and encouraged them to view challenges in their communities as opportunities to lead change. They crafted and shared extraordinary ideas on how, as young entrepreneurs, they would address issues such as unemployment, corruption, environmental sustainability, education and healthcare. We hope this “Anzisha effect” will continue in the months and years to come.

We are at the beginning of an exciting journey. All around us, young people are eager and poised to make a difference in their communities. The Anzisha Prize celebrates their initiative and innovation. It underscores their ability to shape the future of Africa, and identifies exceptional young entrepreneurs who are leading by example.

We are proud to present the 2012 Anzisha Prize Fellows. Thank you for joining us for the second annual awards. 
 

Yours sincerely,
 
Chris Bradford – Founder and Dean of African Leadership Academy

Reeta Roy – President and CEO of The MasterCard Foundation

Ashesi’s campus has been bustling with the energy of students, faculty, and staff who were part of the Ashesi Robotics Experience (ARX) – a  robotics program and competition for secondary school students in Ghana. ARX aims to get high school students excited about studying computer science, math, and engineering at the university level, so they can take part in the technology revolution taking place across the continent. Sixty students selected from high schools across Ghana, arrived at Ashesi’s campus and participated in computing workshops, worked in teams to build and program robots, and competed in a set of challenges using their robots.  The challenge? Designing prototype robots capable of harvesting pineapples!

The program was designed by Dr. Ayorkor Korasah – a former faculty member of Carnegie Melon University and co-founder of the Africa Robotics Network – who believes that robotics will be key to preparing Africa’s next generation for its future role in the technology movement. In this short film that documents the ARX week, Dr. Korsah says, “When our students learn how to apply this knowledge, they will be able to come up with creative solutions to the problems we have on the continent.”
 

Click here to view the embedded video.

ARX will be run at Ashesi on an annual basis, and aims to expand its reach to students across Africa. As for the inaugural class of ARX – they leave Ashesi’s campus charged up about robotics, and equipped with the knowledge and skills to pursue future studies or initiatives in this field.

Henrietta Gborgblorbu, a winner on the novice team from S.O.S Hermann Gmeiner High School summed up her experience well:  “This week was totally beyond my expectations.  The program really challenged us to solve problems and use our critical thinking skills.  I didn’t expect to be so excited about robotics.  I want to start a robotics club at my high school.”