Young Lives at the Development Studies Association (DSA) Annual Conference 2008

Workshop parallel session: Children and Youth as the future of development

Co-convened by Young Lives, Department of International Development, University of Oxford; Agence Française de Développement (AFD) Research Department; and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Centre

This panel will present research that has been undertaken by three independent but mutually complementary research projects: Young Lives (Oxford University), Vocational Training in the Informal Sector in Seven African Countries (AFD) and Technical and Vocational Skills Development in Africa (OECD Development Centre & African Development Bank). Fewer than 5 per cent of secondary school students in SSA are enrolled in technical and vocational programmes and the majority of the African youth cannot access school based training. The first session will focus on some issues pertaining to the long term impact of children living in poverty with regards to access to enrolment at the primary education (ISCED1) and lower-secondary level (ISCED2).  More importantly, the paper raises the question as to what happens to those who do not have access to education or those who do poorly at school the so-called school leavers. If they do not get access to vocational training systems which potentially could help them break out of the poverty trap, there is a risk that they will grow up to transfer poverty to the next generation. This loss of human capital has a formidable implications for national development. It is estimated that about 133 million young people (more than 50 per cent of the youth population) in Africa are illiterate. Many young people have few or no skills and are therefore largely excluded from productive economic and social life. The incidence of youth unemployment in sub-Saharan African (SSA) is estimated to be over 20 per cent.

Few countries have policies to stimulate skills development in the informal sector, the largest employer and provider of training in Africa. Private-enterprise sector, including the “informal” sector holds the most promise for training the next generation of entrepreneurs likely to provide employment and prosperity. The second session is based upon a comparative study carried out by the AFD Research Department on vocational training in the informal sector in seven African countries. It identifies propositions to better orient their actions and investments in the skills development field towards an economic sector that is largely predominant in developing countries. 

Finally, the last session provides a snapshot of the approaches, experience and prospects of Technical and Vocational Skills Development (TVSD) in Africa identified through 34 African Ecnonomic Outlook Report (AEO) country notes. The session provides many outstanding examples of good practices, which could if scaled-up address some of the issues highlighted in the previous two sessions. Emphasis will be put at how to address the crucial information gap on e.g. youth unemployment through M&E mechanisms of existing TVSD programmes and labour market observatories.

Paper 1: Is Education For All Fulfilling Its Promise?
Dr Jo Boyden Director, Young Lives (University of Oxford). [Powerpoint file 7403 KB]

Paper 2: Vocational Training in the Informal Sector or How to stimulate the economies of developing countries ?
Conclusions of a field survey in seven African countries.
Richard Walther, Senior Consultant ITG  / AFD [Powerpoint file 445 KB]

Paper 3: Towards a Renewal of Apprenticeship in West Africa Enhancing the Professional Integration of Young People
Richard Walther, Senior Consultant ITG / AFD

Paper 4: Technical and Vocational Skills Development in Africa
Christian Kingombe, Economist, OECD Development Centre [Powerpoint file 1005 KB]

Download the workshop outline document here for further details and also abstracts of each paper. (PDF file 922 KB)

A further Young Lives contribution to the DSA conference is that Dr Laura Camfield is presenting a paper written by herself and two other Young Lives team members: What’s the use of ‘well-being’ in contexts of child poverty? Approaches to research, monitoring and children’s participation’ by Laura Camfield (Young Lives, University of Oxford), Natalia Streuli (University of Oxford) and Martin Woodhead (Open University).

This will be presented as part of the parallel session on Wellbeing and Development Policy and Practice in the 21st Century


More information about the Development Studies Association Conference can be found on  their website at: www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm ....... including the full programme and information about all parallel sessions.

Please contact Caroline Knowles, Young Lives Communications Manager for any further information about Young Lives and this event.
Email: caroline.knowles@qeh.ox.ac.uk or telephone +44 (0)1865 289963