Publication: Gambia, The - Youth Employment and Skills Development Study : Improving Youth Employment Outcomes Through Enhanced Skills Development
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2010-08-01
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2010-08-01
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Despite substantial improvements in access to basic education and steady economic growth, The Gambia still faces considerable challenges in respect to reducing poverty. As the result of its narrow economic base and its reduced internal market, the country will continue to rely heavily on the productivity of its citizens to reverse the cycle that keeps families in poverty generation after generation. Poverty reduction is a complex equation that involves improvements in job creation, especially for high-skilled and productive employment, as well as improvements in human capital levels to ensure that citizens are able to take advantage of employment opportunities. Currently, however, low human capital levels greatly limit the productivity and employment outcomes of the population, as evidenced by the fact that a majority continues to work in subsistence agriculture, especially in rural areas. The Second Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper II (2007-2015, PRSP II) recognizes the need to focus on improving youth employment outcomes. It states that 'The Gambia has a problem of youth unemployment especially those that have limited skills. Consequently, a big proportion of the youth are part of the people categorized as poor in The Gambia. PRSP II will focus on the problem of youth unemployment through various approaches including supporting private sector investment that creates jobs for the youth, increasing access to productive assets particularly credit by the youth, and retooling and training the youth to increase their employability.'
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“World Bank. 2010. Gambia, The - Youth Employment and Skills Development Study : Improving Youth Employment Outcomes Through Enhanced Skills Development. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2964 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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