Creating Youth Employment

Jul 26, 2015 News

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By Lance Hinds
Guyana’s population is one of the youngest in the region, with our youth being close to, if not over, 60% of the overall figure.  What is also of tremendous concern, however, is the news from media and also officialdom that unemployment within this demographic is close to 40 per cent.  That is a staggering figure, not of course peculiar to Guyana alone.

Youth unemployment has also become a troubling figure in the Caribbean landscape, and is now reported to be close to being the highest in the world (Youth Unemployment and Labour in the Caribbean, Caribbean Knowledge Series, January 2014). Many Caribbean countries are still struggling to recover from the global recession of 2008/2009. This has caused even higher debt-to-GDP ratios and economic growth.
In Guyana, negative social conditions of poverty, crime, a toxic political environment and a lack of opportunities have pushed most of our youth to seek greener pastures in more developed countries. The question, therefore, is how we begin to confront and solve this state of affairs.
Unemployment at such levels cannot be eradicated overnight. It requires a well-thought-out medium to long term solution that is realistic and achievable. The reality is that job creation will not come from the usual suspects (agriculture, mining, manufacturing, sugar) due to a lack of preferential markets, competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis other countries due to issues of scale, the high cost of energy and other related challenges.
Previous approaches included the concentration on specific skills development, but results from vocational educational programmes have been a mixed bag. In addition, very limited attention was given to establishing linkages with the labour market and facilitating students’ transition into it once they graduate.
Based on the above challenges, I will continue argue for the implementation of ICT-related initiatives to support the reduction of this level of unemployment. My argument is based on a fundamental belief that ICT as a practice, and also as a cross-cutting component, is the discipline with quite possibly the largest amount and widest range of career entry points. This can range from data entry/capture, scanning, mobile application development, web applications development, programming all the way up to computer systems engineering.
The advantage of this is that it does not always require a university education to work in this field. A good example of this is a process called microwork. This is a series of small tasks that have been broken out of a larger business process or project that can be completed via the internet or mobile devices. Microwork is considered the smallest – the most granular unit of work in a virtual assembly. It also requires the lowest level of skills.  It means, therefore, youth in economically-challenged communities can quickly be trained to perform critical tasks while being taught to provide services higher up the food chain.
There is also tremendous potential for revenue in this sector. Over the past two decades the offshore services industry has turned into one of the most dynamic sectors, employing directly over five million people around the world. The rapid evolution of information technology has allowed the separation of production and consumption of services and the possibility of developing economies such as ours, contributing significantly to the world’s services industry. Skill intensive activities, once performed by the developed world, can now be performed regardless of location.
Jamaica, for example, is a leading light in the Caribbean region, by virtue of their commitment in investment in this sector and resulting returns in terms of the sector’s contribution to the country’s overall GDP. Specific initiatives were developed with a specific goal of involving and fostering the employment of youth.
In 2013, the Government of Jamaica, in partnership with the World Bank and the Private Sector, launched Digital Jam 2.0. This event allowed young Jamaicans to showcase the skills, talent and capacity necessary to be “game changers” for the economy and drivers of a knowledge-based society. It saw the participation of over 2,000 young Jamaicans in a series of competitions (apps contests and ‘hackathons’ on the sport industry), workshops, training on mobile software development, and presentations by industry leaders, as well as Jamaicans offering their services online.
Some specific targets were established including:
1)  4,500 new Jamaican youth working on microwork and e-lancing platforms.
2) Establishment of the funding window for start-up companies from the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce
3) Commercial interest expressed by investors in acquiring apps completed as part of Digital Jam 2.0.
4) Internships at leading telecommunication companies in Jamaica and the Caribbean
5) Mentoring by Microsoft Jamaica
6) Scholarships to Howard University offered to app competition winners
The Government of Jamaica has committed to Digital Jam being a yearly event. With proper planning, there is absolutely no reason why this cannot be duplicated elsewhere.
Back then to the question about resolving the issue of youth employment in Guyana. Clearly there is a lot of work to do to achieve the desired goals and limited availability of funds because of well documented challenges does not help matters. As discussed previously there are issues on the legislative side that still need to be resolved. Still, an effort must and can be made to address this critical state of affairs.
The building of community tech hubs nationwide to facilitate awareness and rapid training should be considered as a first initiative. It is a way to transfer skills without the constraints and conditions inherent in a formal educational environment. These incubation spaces are key to emerging digital economies, because they solve a lot a problems young digital practitioners face by providing connectivity, support structures, mentorship and collaboration. Some of the infrastructure already exists.
The e-government network has been designed (By the Grace of the Father) to provide connectivity to government agencies and communities. This can be extended to support community tech hubs in villages and other jurisdictions throughout Guyana. This can be the building of that youth entrepreneurial class that is critical to the long term growth and future of this economy.
In 2013, the Government of Jamaica spent US$20 million for the development of ICT space for new ICT businesses and incubators. In view of the investment in our current productive sectors and their current status, that does not seem like a lot of money.
(To be continued)

Lance Hinds is the current President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce. He is also the Chief Executive Officer of the BrainStreet Group, an ICT consulting and information services company.

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