Youth in Sudan Opportunities & challenges

Youth in Sudan Opportunities & challenges Presented by: Rasha Elmahdi Head of Policy & Programmes Sudan National Population Council Feb - 2012

Aims of this Presentation • To present the situation of youth in Sudan in relation to employment • To highlight the opportunities, constraints and challenges of youth employment in Sudan • To shed light on how to assess the capacity of youth and, develop appropriate strategy to build their capacity.

Background • The post CPA period has become extremely challenging for the current Sudan. The decline in oil revenue resulting from the secession of South Sudan has resulted in to macroeconomic shocks on both the domestic (fiscal) and external (balance of payment) front. • Sudan has completed a Five-Year Development Plan within a 25 years strategy (2007-2031). The Government is now finalizing the second Five-Year Development Plan (2012-2016) intending to reduce poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

Youth Characteristics • Youth sector in Sudan represents main feature of the population composition by the fact of being the fastest growing segment among the different age groups of the communities of the high fertility levels, where those below the age of 25 represent 60% of the total populations.(2008 census)

Youth Unemployment According to 2008 census, the unemployment rate is 16.8 percent. The number of unemployed persons seeking work for the first time, has increased to about 0.94 million in 2008 compared to 0.6 in 1993 census. More than half of the unemployed are youth. The age group 20-24 accounted for 18.5 percent of those seeking work for the first time, indicating the flow of a large number of college graduates resulting from the massive expansion of high education institutions in the 1990s.

Government attempts to reduce unemployment among youth: • The national policy for Micro credit where 12% of the commercial bank lending portfolio go to micro credit projects. • National project for graduate employment. • National youth employment policy.

Constraints to Youth Unemployment • The low growth of employment, increasing unemployment and low levels of productivity remain at the root of high and persistent levels of poverty in the Sudan. • Agriculture continues to be the main source of employment for the majority of the labor force, particularly in rural areas; and 34 percent of the total labor force was engaged in agriculture. In rural areas 50 percent of the rural labor force is engaged in agricultural activities.

The majority of the poor are engaged in agriculture sector. In rural areas, the incidence of poverty in the agricultural sector is found to be 64%., while in the non-agricultural sector it is 51% indicating rural poverty is concentrated in the agricultural sectors. • In urban areas formal employment is provided mostly by government agencies and the trade sector which government is the biggest employer and accommodates the major economic and non-economic activities even after the advent of oil early 2000. • Most of the services, economic activities, skilled labor professionals and government institutions, as well as, private sector companies and NGOs are located in Khartoum , the capital.

Assessing the needs of youth • UNDP (DDR) with other 8 UN agencies in partnership with the Government of Sudan conducted an in-depth study in three states in Northern Sudan to analyze the employment labor market supply and demand regarding youth employment . • The results identified seven (7) main growing economic sectors namely: agriculture, manufacturing, construction, wholesales, transportation, accommodation, health and social work.

Youth Perception vs. the Reality • Youth believed that stable jobs should be within the government and government large business in private sector. • Government doesn't expand its employment, and, the large public and private investments in sectors like oil companies and industry who create more opportunities for employment -such opportunities need specialized experience and knowledge most of the youth do not have.

On the other hand employers are not willing to invest to train local youth or provide them with the opportunity to acquire the required knowledge or on-the-job training . • In addition, education, generally, not up to the standards of large private sector companies • Considering this situation, youth will be operating in a dual environment and have to make the choice between seeking employment in the traditional economic sectors, or trying to make their way into the modern and expanding sectors, where they will have more long-term opportunities but will also need to acquire the appropriate skills.

UNDP/DDR survey to explore the perception and needs for both youth and market concludes the following: • Youth are eager for training that would assist them in running their own small businesses in different growing sectors. • They expressed a willingness to participate in formal vocational training programs, but would require sponsorship for their living expenses.

Major Challenges • In spite of the fact that the majority of the population working in agricultural sector specially in the rural area and the huge natural recourses in relation to agriculture production this sector is almost neglected specially after the advent of oil early 2000. • Shortage of technical training (Hygiene and food safety, Engineering and Vocational Training) and no vocational training institutes for those domains in the area. The training centers are available with suitable facilities but training are thought to be theoretical rather than functional the training is not consider the actual need of labor market.

When it comes to self-employment, youth face many problems from lack of lending facilities to the lack of knowledge about obtaining loans and starting their own business, allot of requirements are needed such as different documentation and guarantees which may frustrate youth and deter them from taking advantage.

Way forward Training to build the capacities of the youth are Technical training in the construction and agriculture supporting activities, entrepreneurship and Managerial and financial training for small businesses, leadership training is of highly importance. Building the ability of the youth to enter this labor market entails more than only vocational training, it should include training and coaching aimed at the acquisition of a professional attitude so that youth may meet the more stringent conditions of the large companies.

Revitalizing the non-oil productive sector of the economy through diversification and promoting private sector investment is another important area of challenge as the non-oil sector has been on the decline since the advent of oil. The oil sector being capital intensive, its employment intensity and hence poverty reduction impact has been limited

Sudan should adopt a strategy for youth employment based on the needs of the growing and promising sector as they will need to assist youth in getting employed and improve the competiveness of the country as well as its capacity to attract national and foreign investors. the strategy should support the development of a flexible skill acquisition program in which specific marketable skills could be learnt and immediately used.

Thanks

Youth in Sudan Opportunities & challenges