Abriham Ebabu Engidaw
Failure to address youth employment issues will have serious consequences for the economy and society for any country. Ethiopia accounts for the largest youth population in Sub-Saharan Africa and the lack of employment opportunities for Ethiopian young people are among the critical developing challenges facing the country. High unemployment rates, chiefly for youth, impede Ethiopia from growing even more. In spite of the public sector’s efforts to reduce unemployment and create jobs, there is a need for the private sector’s contribution, since it is considered a long-term source of most jobs. In Ethiopia, there have been significant increases in educational attainment; however, there has not been as much job creation to provide employment opportunities to the newly educated job seekers. Based on World Bank report 2004, the lack of employment opportunities for Ethiopian young people is among the perilous development challenges facing the country, and a key barrier to national efforts toward the country’s development goals. Only about 40% of Ethiopian children complete primary education and just 13% are enrolled in secondary education, meaning that most young people entering the labor market bring with them very low levels of human capital.