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Youth Employment in Africa: New Evidence and Policies from Swaziland

Author

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  • Brixiova, Zuzana

    (UNECA)

  • Kangoye, Thierry

    (African Development Bank)

Abstract

Drawing on the 2007 and 2010 Swaziland Labor Force Surveys, this paper provides first systematic evidence on recent youth employment challenges in Swaziland, a small, land-locked, middle-income country with one of the highest youth unemployment rates in Africa. The paper first documents the various labor market disadvantages faced by the Swazi youth, such as high unemployment and discouragement, and how they changed from 2007 to 2010. A multinomial logit regression analysis is then carried out to analyze the socio-economic drivers of the unfavorable youth labor market outcomes on the supply side. Since many of the factors that can unlock the employment potential of the Swazi youth are on the demand side of the labor market, the paper examines the barriers to job creation and youth entrepreneurship. It concludes with experiences of other countries that could inform design of more effective interventions for youth employment in Swaziland.

Suggested Citation

  • Brixiova, Zuzana & Kangoye, Thierry, 2013. "Youth Employment in Africa: New Evidence and Policies from Swaziland," IZA Discussion Papers 7467, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp7467
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. John C. Anyanwu, 2013. "Characteristics and Macroeconomic Determinants of Youth Employment in Africa," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 25(2), pages 107-129, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Brixiová, Zuzana & Ncube, Mthuli & Bicaba, Zorobabel, 2015. "Skills and Youth Entrepreneurship in Africa: Analysis with Evidence from Swaziland," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 11-26.
    2. Gill,Indermit S. & Kharas,Homi, 2015. "The middle-income trap turns ten," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7403, The World Bank.
    3. Servaas van der Berg & Marizanne Knoesen, 2018. "Demand for education in the five countries of the South African Customs Union – Projections and implications," Working Papers 20/2018, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    4. Lucilla Maria Bruni & Jamele Rigolini & Sara Troiano, 2016. "Forever Young?," World Bank Publications - Reports 24996, The World Bank Group.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Africa; policies; youth employment and entrepreneurship; multivariate analysis;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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