Youth Economic Participation Initiative

Welcome Workshop, 18-21 Nov 2013, Cape Town S.A.The Youth Economic Participation Initiative

Youth Economic Participation Initiative


Global Youth Employment Crisis

The global unemployment rate among 15- to 24-year-olds is estimated at 12.6% in 2013, with 73 million young people jobless worldwide

(International Labour Organization)

University graduates are encountering:

1. A lack of job opportunities

2. A lack of skills and abilities necessary to access and succeed in the opportunities that are available• For example: South Africa – 600,000 unemployed university graduates and 800,000

unfilled vacancies in 2012 (The Economist 2012).

3. A university degree is no guarantee of employment• Tunisia – 40% of university graduates are unemployed, compared with 24% of non-

graduates (World Economic Forum 2013)


The Talloires Network envisions universities around the world as vibrant and dynamic forces in their societies, incorporating social responsibility into their research and teaching mission.

From a long time, the TN has been hearing from universities around the world that are already implementing innovative and creative programs that engage students in their communities and prepare them to succeed in the workplace.

To date, very few of these current initiatives have evaluated, documented and disseminated their learning in a way that would allow knowledge from individual programs to benefit a wider, global audience.


Planning Phase - 2011

1 year exploration with youth consultancy firm DECODE www.decode.net

90 peer-to-peer interviews with students in 9 countries

International advisory committee

6 week online learning community

Origins of YEPIYEPI Launched in July 2012 with support from The MasterCard Foundation

Mission: The MasterCard Foundation advances youth learning and promotes financial inclusion to catalyze prosperity in developing countries.

Serves 5 million people in 49 developing countries, particularly in Africa

The Youth Learning Program Life Skills(Report in your binder)

• Digital Literacy• Agribusiness• Manufacturing• Retail and Hospitality• Construction



Some Findings

• Consensus among students, graduates and business/community leaders that universities could better prepare young people for the workforce:– Students lack technical skills and soft skills (including verbal communication, team work , presentation skills)– Access to networks and guidance from mentors is crucial

• Stronger partnerships across all stakeholder groups in the community (i.e. large and small businesses, civil servants, policy makers, NGOs, NFPs, universities and student representatives) are seen as critical for developing the most relevant and impactful solutions for preparing educated young people for the workforce.

• Entrepreneurialism is a complex but critical component to the solution of “educated unemployables” in the developing world, BUT Entrepreneurialism is not a preferred choice for many risk-averse youth, although under difference circumstances many would pursue this option as a means to serve their communities and, in turn, grow personally and professionally.


Focus on programs with:

• Strong university-community partnerships

• Soft Skills – Communications, teamwork, problem-solving, public-speaking, leadership, negotiation, and creativity.

• Networks – Providing contacts, mentorships, guidance and exposure to the business environment.

• Curricula reform – Collaborating with businesses and communities to bring offerings of university in line with knowledge and skill needs of the market.

• Entrepreneurship – Teaching skills required to think creatively, launch a business, providing resources to support enterprise, lower risks of entrepreneurship.

Why your programs?


Selection Criteria

1. Strength of Program Design – with a focus on curricula reform, new pedagogies, multiple complementary approaches, collaboration within and across the university.

2. Institutional Commitment and Capabilities – high level of expertise and experience with collaborating, teaching and learning.

3. Partnerships, Collaboration with the Community – strong university-community partnerships, strong networks providing contacts, mentorships and experience of the business environment.

4. Youth Participation and leadership – young leaders and large numbers of students participating in and shaping your programs.

5. Multiple complementary strategies - combination of multiple intersecting approaches; strong mix of hands on experience, practical training and academic instruction


The YEPI goals and activities

1. Support universities to expand innovative models enabling upper-year students and recent alumni to accelerate their transition to the work force.

2. Facilitate a global Community of Practice to promote the exchange of knowledge.

• Award 8 Demonstration Grants

• Create an online space for discussion and the exchange of knowledge about best practices and brokering joint projects through the Community of Practice.

• Collaborate with the YEPI Learning Partners from the University of Minnesota to capture and document learning

• Timeframe: 2013 – 2016


Discussion(Your ideas)

What can we create together?

What is YEPI to you?

Why does it matter?


The Model Virtual discussionsWebinars

In-person conveningsProgress reportsMonitoring and

Evaluation Peer-reviewed

publications Conference

presentations Final reports Online trainings

and webinars Exemplars University

exchanges Future funding

YEPI Partner Universities

YEPI Community of Practice

Education

Youth Economic Participation Initiative