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Youth in the Labour Market: Does Inequality of Opportunity Matter? The Experience of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Madagascar

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  • Atif Awad

    (University of Sharjah)

  • M. Azhar Hussain

    (University of Sharjah
    Universitetsvej 1)

Abstract

We investigate how factors beyond an individual’s control determine the youth’s status in the labour market. The factors include gender, age, residential areas, parental education, and parental occupation. We differentiate between three main labour market categories, which are employed, unemployed, and inactive. Additionally, how the mentioned factors determine the allocation of employed people among various sectors is also examined. We use descriptive statistical techniques, regressions, and the propensity score matching model based on the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Madagascar data gathered from the school-to-work transition survey carried out by the International Labour Organization in 2015. The descriptive statistical results show that the educational attainment of the youth and their parents is disappointing, and most of the youth engage in private or family businesses. The propensity score matching technique results discover that inequality of opportunity can be a causal explanation for the youth’s labour market status in both countries. The regression approach shows little explanatory power, which implies that youth’s status in the labour market in these countries is mainly attributed to the effort-based inequality and not inequality of opportunity.

Suggested Citation

  • Atif Awad & M. Azhar Hussain, 2023. "Youth in the Labour Market: Does Inequality of Opportunity Matter? The Experience of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Madagascar," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 14(3), pages 3176-3202, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jknowl:v:14:y:2023:i:3:d:10.1007_s13132-022-00902-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s13132-022-00902-5
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    References listed on IDEAS

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