Digitally empowering young people in refugee and host communities What is possible? - A mapping study in Kenya
The mapping study conducted by the ILO aims to inform practitioners in the field, including the programme staff and development partners, in the design and implementation of activities. The study seeks to identify good practices, capture lessons learned, and take note of potential areas of innovation by employers, training and young people themselves with a view to enhancing decent work in the digital economy in Kenya.
The number of forcibly displaced persons worldwide is increasing due to persecution, conflict, violence, climate change or human rights violations. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the already marginalized refugee and displaced communities further into poverty. Women and girls are facing increased exposure to gender-based violence and worsening gender inequality, access to education and training has been further reduced, and people are under increasing pressure to return to unsafe or unstable situations. Border closures and lockdown measures have led to a dramatic decrease in mobility for these populations. Action is urgently needed to mitigate the plight of these affected persons. There is a window of opportunity for improving the management of the forced displacement crisis.
A joint and fully integrated partnership programme has emerged toward responding to this context. The PROSPECTS Partnership Programme brings together humanitarian and development actors to redefine responses to forced displacement. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank are working to respond to forced displacement in the Middle East, North Africa and the Horn of Africa, in collaboration with and supported by the Government of the Netherlands.
Young people have been one of the groups most affected by displacement. Young people between the ages of 18 and 24 represent 13 per cent of the global refugee population (compared with 11 per cent of the world population and 9 per cent of international migrants) and half of the refugee population is under the age of 18. Globally, one-fifth of young people currently have NEET status, which means they are not gaining experience in the labour market, nor are they receiving an income from work or enhancing their education and skills.
Young people are important beneficiaries of the PROSPECTS project, and all five of the PROSPECTS partners. Youth are targeted across the three main outcomes of the PROSPECTS project, although the outcomes related to (1) education and learning, (2) employment and livelihoods, are particularly relevant for youth. For the ILO, the strategic framework for engaging youth is articulated in the 2012 ILC resolution: A Call for Action on Youth Employment. The Call points to five thematic areas of action: employment and economic policies for youth employment; employability – education, training and skills, and the school- to-work transition; labour market policies; youth entrepreneurship and self-employment; and rights for young people. The ILO coordinates the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth where youth in fragile situations and youth in the digital economy are two of the eight thematic priorities.
In Kenya, PROSPECTS has a geographical focus on Turkana and Garissa counties, and the digital economy has emerged as a key sector with potential to contribute towards the creation of decent jobs, especially for Kenya’s youth. This presents an opportunity for refugees to access jobs in the digital labour market through acquisition of market driven digital skills. To achieve this, the ILO and UNHCR are working on a project towards a digital revolution for refugee and host community youth in Kenya underpinned by three interrelated outcomes: i) boosting market driven digital skills; ii) easing youth transitions to jobs in the digital economy through enhanced labour market intermediation services; and iii) supporting digitally skilled youth to access quality jobs in the digital economy.
In light of the above, the ILO conducted the mapping study “Digitally empowering young people in refugee and host communities – What is possible?” to inform practitioners in the field, including the programme staff and development partners, in the design and implementation of activities. The study, presented here, seeks to identify good practices, capture lessons learned, and take note of potential areas of innovation by employers, training and young people themselves with a view to enhancing decent work in the digital economy in Kenya.
A joint and fully integrated partnership programme has emerged toward responding to this context. The PROSPECTS Partnership Programme brings together humanitarian and development actors to redefine responses to forced displacement. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank are working to respond to forced displacement in the Middle East, North Africa and the Horn of Africa, in collaboration with and supported by the Government of the Netherlands.
Young people have been one of the groups most affected by displacement. Young people between the ages of 18 and 24 represent 13 per cent of the global refugee population (compared with 11 per cent of the world population and 9 per cent of international migrants) and half of the refugee population is under the age of 18. Globally, one-fifth of young people currently have NEET status, which means they are not gaining experience in the labour market, nor are they receiving an income from work or enhancing their education and skills.
Young people are important beneficiaries of the PROSPECTS project, and all five of the PROSPECTS partners. Youth are targeted across the three main outcomes of the PROSPECTS project, although the outcomes related to (1) education and learning, (2) employment and livelihoods, are particularly relevant for youth. For the ILO, the strategic framework for engaging youth is articulated in the 2012 ILC resolution: A Call for Action on Youth Employment. The Call points to five thematic areas of action: employment and economic policies for youth employment; employability – education, training and skills, and the school- to-work transition; labour market policies; youth entrepreneurship and self-employment; and rights for young people. The ILO coordinates the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth where youth in fragile situations and youth in the digital economy are two of the eight thematic priorities.
In Kenya, PROSPECTS has a geographical focus on Turkana and Garissa counties, and the digital economy has emerged as a key sector with potential to contribute towards the creation of decent jobs, especially for Kenya’s youth. This presents an opportunity for refugees to access jobs in the digital labour market through acquisition of market driven digital skills. To achieve this, the ILO and UNHCR are working on a project towards a digital revolution for refugee and host community youth in Kenya underpinned by three interrelated outcomes: i) boosting market driven digital skills; ii) easing youth transitions to jobs in the digital economy through enhanced labour market intermediation services; and iii) supporting digitally skilled youth to access quality jobs in the digital economy.
In light of the above, the ILO conducted the mapping study “Digitally empowering young people in refugee and host communities – What is possible?” to inform practitioners in the field, including the programme staff and development partners, in the design and implementation of activities. The study, presented here, seeks to identify good practices, capture lessons learned, and take note of potential areas of innovation by employers, training and young people themselves with a view to enhancing decent work in the digital economy in Kenya.