Youth unemployment in Eswatini is a chronic problem. A staggering 58.2% of young people in Eswatini remain unemployed, one of the worst rates in the world. Furthermore, the World Bank estimates that 25,000 young people enter the labor market each year, with only 1,000 jobs created annually. Young people in Eswatini make up 30% of the population and account for 48.4% of the labor force, a strikingly high share that underscores growing concerns about youth unemployment.

This crisis stems largely from Eswatini’s skills gap, one of the world’s widest. Consequently, young people’s skills due to training or education are far below what employers require. In 2017, Eswatini ranked 136/139 in the International Labor Organization Skills Mismatch Index. Furthermore, more than 50% of Eswatini’s workforce holds jobs in the informal sector, leaving many young people without wage protections.

High youth unemployment can fuel poverty and inequality, with 53% of the population already living below the poverty line. Furthermore, as young people are discouraged by repeated failures in the job market, many may leave the labor market altogether. This lost potential threatens to hold back progress and risks entrenching young people in cycles of dependency and social instability.

The Eswatini Youth Employment Opportunities Project

Recognizing the severe economic and social risks posed by youth unemployment, the World Bank has stepped in with a bold response. It launched the Eswatini Youth Employment Opportunities Project to help the country harness the full potential of its young population. The first component of the World Bank’s project aims to expand income-earning opportunities for young people.

The scheme will specifically target 30,000 young people, at least 50% female and provide targeted support in the agricultural sector, aiming to promote self-employment opportunities. Given the size of Eswatini’s farming population, this can revolutionize the farm job market and lower youth unemployment in Eswatini.

Smarter Youth Welfare Spending

The project’s second component shifts the focus from skills and income generation to ensuring that support reaches the most vulnerable youth. Indeed, this will involve the development of a digital Eswatini Social Registry to provide relevant data that will allow the Eswatini government to target welfare resources more effectively.

This part of the plan is essentially an effort to ensure that the Eswatini government’s welfare spending on young people is used as efficiently as possible. If this program can ensure that the resources of Eswatini’s government are being spent efficiently, it could unlock millions of dollars that can be spent on the welfare of Eswatini’s youth.

Final Remarks

The Eswatini Youth Employment Opportunities Project represents more than an economic program; it signals a potential turning point for the nation’s future. The plan effectively combines direct income-generating initiatives with more efficient social protection systems. In doing so, it aims to address the immediate need for jobs and the structural barriers that keep young people from accessing the labor market.

– Adam Walsh

Adam is based in Burnley, Lancashire, UK and focuses on Good News and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons