Young people are almost three times more likely to be unemployed than adults and are continuously subject to underemployment, holding lower quality jobs that do not fully capitalize on their skills and talents. In addition, youth, and particularly young women, face greater labor market inequalities as they are often underpaid, and have to undertake multiple part-time jobs or work under temporary contracts. For this reason, entrepreneurship, leadership, innovative thinking and creativity must be better integrated into existing education systems that currently fail to address the practical needs of many young people. In the upcoming future, job creation will take place under sectors requiring STEM – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – skills, thus education curriculum must be shifted to better boost youth employability and empower them for the future.

Meeting: Skills Development to Improve Youth Empowerment

Date/Time/Location: 15 July, 2016; 10:00 – 13:00; Conference Room 1

Speakers: Mr. Ahmad Alhendawi, United Nations Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth; Mr. Ronald Bruder, Founder of Education for Employment; Mr. William S. Reese, President and Chief Executive Officer, International Youth Foundation; Mr. Wellington Chibebe, Deputy Secretary General, International Trade Union Confederation; Ms. Kelli Wells, Executive Director of Education, GE Foundation; Santiago Iniguez de Onzo, Dean of IE Business School; Ms. Daniela Bas, Director at the United Nations DSPD/DESA; Ms. Melissa Garcia Velez, Youth Representative and Immigrant Organizer with the New York State Leadership Council

Written By: Lena Courcol
Photo by: UN Media Centre