Global Population Report

This book is part of a publication series that analyses evidence and consolidates key findings on effective ways to promote youth employment and strengthen evidence-based policymaking for young people. It was prepared in response to the unprecedented youth employment crisis of 2012, when the International Labour Conference adopted a resolution calling for urgent action through a range of measures. The Conference also set out guiding principles and tested policies within a macroeconomic and labour-market framework for countries seeking immediate action to integrate young people into labour markets.

The analyses in this book focus on specific policy instruments widely used to improve employment opportunities for young people. Chapter topics were selected for their relevance to: (a) the quality of strategy design and implementation; (b) the need to clarify issues where evidence remains incomplete or where judgements are driven more by assumptions than analysis; and (c) cases where innovative, in-depth study can deepen understanding of the issues concerned.

The book presents analyses and evidence reviews, using a range of appropriate methodologies to examine specific questions in youth employment policy and develop targeted recommendations that support young people’s effective integration into decent work.

The policy issues were also selected with reference to the five pillars of the International Labour Organization’s 2012 approach to youth employment policy formulation:

1. Employment and economic policies for youth employment.

2. Employability: education, training and skills, and the school-to-work transition.

3. Labour market policies.

4. Youth entrepreneurship and self-employment.

5. Young people’s rights.