According to the UN, there are 75 million unemployed youth globally, making youth unemployment one of the biggest challenges for both developing and developed countries in the next decade. The factors impacting this complex issue are manifold, and youth themselves paint a grim picture of their present circumstances:
- 74% feel they cannot not access money or capital required to start a business
- 40% need training on how to run a business
- 59% feel that looking for work opportunities was ‘impossible’ with lack of skills and a lack of contacts being some of the highest ranked challenges
This is only an example of what the GSMA Mobile for Employment Programme and Alcatel-Lucent found when they asked youths, mobile operators, and ecosystem partners in Bangladesh, Ghana, Indonesia and Spain for their thoughts on youth employment barriers and how mobile services could help.
What is the opportunity for mobile solutions to combat this problem?
- How can we build a new employment reality for youth?
- What new solutions or initiatives have potential to make needed changes today?
- What are the viable business models for these services?
- And what opportunities do mobile services create for improving the youth employment landscape?
Please RSVP now to join the GSMA and Alcatel-Lucent for a “Mobile for Youth Employment” event – an evening of lively discussions around how mobile services can play a role in helping to get youth on an employment trajectory.
We’ll have lightning-style talks with concrete implementation suggestions from:
- Lauren Dawes, Head of Mobile for Employment, GSMA
- Revital Marom, Head of Market & Consumer Insight, Alcatel-Lucent
- Jacob Korenblum, Founder, Souktel
- And you? RSVP now to present your solution
Before the talks, we will have a networking reception so you can meet fellow thought leaders and decision makers in youth employment, workforce development, and mobile technology.
5:30-8:30pm, Wednesday, July 10th 2013
GSMA London
7th Floor, 5 New Street Square
London, EC4A 3BF
Please RSVP now to attend this in-person only event and follow the #GSMAm2w hashtag for real-time discussion highlights.
We need the same conference here in Kenya, there are so many unemployed youth and almost 95% of them have mobile phones
Great article! The mobile space in Africa is truly vibrant and exciting. Thought you might be interested in this infographic summarising the mLearning space in Africa and the Middle East
http://infogr.am/Continuing-m-Learning-in-the-Middle-East-and-Africa-MEA/
Great post but we can not deny that there are still many who are unemployed even for those who have mobile phones but also we cannot deny that mobile phones can greatly help us, not only for communication but also for job searching and for entertainment also.