Income and Work for Young Men and Women in Africa: A Political Economy and Social Equity Approach to the Employment Potential of Specific Sectors and Sub-Sectors in African Economies

The issue of youth employment remains a major concern in Africa, particularly in Kenya, Senegal, and Uganda despite the fact these countries have implemented several initiatives to reduce youth unemployment. Evidence from the three countries suggest that the employment programmes have had limited impact on youth employment. This collaborative study was therefore set up to: i) Identify promising economic sectors or value chains for job creation for young men and women in selected countries in Africa; ii) Determine the country-specific conditions needed for local and foreign private sector to invest in these sectors or value chains; iii) Identify the country-specific actors that are needed to create these conditions that enhance or reduce investment security; and iv) to explore ways to promote equal access and opportunity for youth to these new sources of work and income, addressing inequality related to gender, socioeconomic background, and place of residence. To achieve the above goals, a set of interlinked activities were undertaken, including use of qualitative and quantitative analysis, the multiplier models using Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) and National Household Surveys (NHS) of the respective countries, and regression analysis.