Africa's Youth Unemployment Crisis By the Numbers
This swelling crisis indicates a waste of great potential.
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A Wasted Youth - During his first official trip to Africa, President Obama met with African youth leaders to discuss leadership development and entrepreneurship. However, with an increasing youth population accounting for 60 percent of all unemployed Africans, youth unemployment foreshadows a future of lost potential. Keep reading to learn about Africa’s alarming youth unemployment by the numbers. —Patrice Peck (Photo: REUTERS/Mike Hutchings)
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Namibia - A 2012 national survey found a huge disparity between Namibia’s overall unemployment rate of 27.4 percent and that of Namibians age 15 to 19 (56.3 percent) and age 20-24 (48.5 percent). However, the youth rates might skew higher, as a member of Namibia National Students Organization told local media that the figure “does not really represent what we are dealing with.” (Photo: REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reilly/Landov)
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South Africa - South African young people age 15 to 24 face a severe unemployment rate of nearly 50 percent as of 2012, according to the CIA World Fact Book. Given the lasting legacies of apartheid, Black youth face an estimated rate of 55 percent. These jobless youth are considered a ticking time bomb likely to turn to violence. (Photo: REUTERS/Rogan Ward)
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Ethiopia - The second most populous African nation, Ethiopia has a youth unemployment rate estimated at more than 50 percent, the U.N. reported. Yet, the government has announced plans to get the youth to work in new jobs created through Ethiopia’s five-year construction plan. (Photo: Natalie Behring-Chisholm/Getty Images)
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Tunisia - This North African nation has experienced ongoing, historically high youth unemployment rates, particularly in rural areas. A series of factors, including limited access to capital for young entrepreneurs and a lack of job matching programs, caused the rate to rise from 23 percent in 2010 to 31 percent in 2011. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
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The Republic of Congo - Young populations in this nation’s urban areas face a staggering unemployment rate of more than 40 percent. A report by the World Bank attributes this jobless growth to an undiversified economy and a predominant oil sector. (Photo: Brent Stirton/Reportage by Getty Images)
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Kenya - Nearly 80 percent of Kenya’s unemployed population is aged 15 to 34, as reported by the U.N. Totaling to more than 1.8 million youth, that rate increases in the case of urban residents and females. (Photo: Reuters)
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Nigeria - Increasing by 16% each year, Nigeria’s youth unemployment rate was higher than 50 percent in 2011, with the national unemployment rate coming in at 23.9 percent. However, that actual figure might be much higher given improper record keeping, say analysts. (Photo: REUTERS/Wonderful Hunkonnu)
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Botswana - A local 2011 survey showed that of the 17.8% unemployed people living in Botswana, 35 percent are young people. As a result, the government and non-governmental organizations have launched a number of job creation programs to address this major challenge. (Photo: Chris Jackson - Pool/Getty Images)
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Malawi - In Malawi, more than 70 percent of young people are either unemployed, working in low quality, irregular, low wage jobs or neither in the labor force nor in education or training, according to the International Labour Organization. (Photo: Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)