Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

and Young People in Sri Lanka

Chatura Rodrigo, Research Economist, IPS
Outline
Background
Millennium Development Goals for youth
Institutional setup and policy context
Achievement of youth MDGs
Productive employment for youth
Education for youth
Healthy youth for development
Gender equality and empowering young women
Youth and environment
Infrastructure and ICT for youth
Challenges and way forward
Background
Youth are an important asset in realizing a countrys
development aspirations
Youth demand better and quality employments, better
education and skills training, better health, better living
conditions, improved infrastructures and ICT facilities
A monitoring and evaluation framework is essential to have
youth development efforts on track and Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) is one of the best frameworks
Millennium Development Goals for youth
Eradicate Extreme Poverty
and Hunger
Achieve Universal Primary
Education
Promote Gender Equity
and Empower Women
Reduce Child Mortality
Improve Maternal Health
Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria
and Other Diseases
Ensure Environmental
Sustainability
Develop a Global
Partnership for
Development
Conventional MDGs
Productive employment
for youth
Education for youth
Healthy youth for
development
Gender equality and
empowering young
women
Youth and environment
Infrastructure and ICT
for youth
Youth MDGs
Customizing
to Sri Lankan
youth
Institutional setup and policy context: some
important milestones
A National Youth Services Council (NYSC) has been in existence since 1969and was
strengthened through the National Youth Services Act 69 of 1979.
A Ministry of Youth was also established in 1979, and a Presidential Commission on
Youth was appointed in 1989
The government also launched the Tharuna Aruna programme in 1997 to provide
subsidy to private sector to hire graduate among other things. A National Youth
Corps was established in 2003.
Today, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills Development (MYASD) is leading the
youth development initiatives with the support of 17 affiliated institutions.
MYASD was successful in initiating the second term of the Sri Lanka youth
parliament and the Sri Lanka Youth policy passed the draft stage and waiting to be
approved by the cabinet
Achievement of youth MDGs: Productive
employment for youth
14%
15%
11%
15%
12%
18%
13%
17%
0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2006 2010
Youth unemployment rates
Source: State of the Economy, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Productive
employment for youth
Youth labour force participation rates
41%
44%
53%
44%
47%
51%
64%
51%
0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2006 2010
Source: State of the Economy, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Productive
employment for youth
5.13%
9.49%
10.74%
8.92%
6.73%
15.09%
29.41%
14.63%
0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00% 25.00% 30.00% 35.00%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2006 2010
Youth below official poverty line
Source: State of the Economy, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Education for
youth
2003 2010
NumbersittingforO/L 434,131 433,673
PercentagequalifyingforA/L
(%ofO/Lcandidates)
43 58
NumbersittingforA/L 213,201 233,354
Numberqualifyingtoenteruniversity 93,292 142,415
Percentagequalifyingtoenteruniversity
(%ofA/Lcandidates)
44 61
Numberadmittedtouniversity 12,736 21,547
Percentageadmittedtouniversity
(%ofA/Lqualified)
14 17
O/L, A/L and university entrance
Source: State of the Economy, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
The Countrys tertiary enrolment rate is low. Many students discontinue school
education or do not qualify for university education due to poor performance at the
national level examinations
Achievement of youth MDGs: Education for
youth
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
DentalScience
Fasiondesign/Transport&logistic
VeterinaryMedicine
Architecture&QuantitySurveying
Law
Indegeniousmedicine
Paramedicalstudies
Agriculture
ComputerScience/IT
Medicine
Engineering
Management&commerce
Science
Arts
Subject streams ay University levels
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Those who do attend university are mostly studying in the arts stream thus limiting
the social capital on science and technology, this also constrains the youths ability to
innovate
Achievement of youth MDGs: Education for
youth
There is a wide gap between school and the world of work. The quality of the general
education system, mainly provided by the public sector is very high standard, yet
sometimes, does not transmit much productive skills to pupils. Hence leads to the
issue of skills mismatch.
Transition from school to vocational training is sometimes not smooth due to lack of
information flow. However, Vocational Training Authority (VTA) is now has launched a
island wide awareness programme
Earlier the acceptance of the TEVT sector was low. Government recently introduced
TVET education in to general education system making it a populat choice of
students
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Healthy youth
for development
Highest proportion of malnourished women was observed in the youngest age group
of 15-19 years (40 per cent), followed by the second lowest age group of 20-29 (22
per cent). Nearly one-third of female youth were anaemic. On average, 39 per cent of
reproductive aged women (15-49 years) were identified as anemic.
There were 6.4 per cent teenage pregnancies in Sri Lanka. Teenage pregnancies were
highest in the estate sector (9.6 per cent) when compared to urban and rural sectors.
Highest prevalence of tobacco and alcohol use was in the age category of 25-39 years.
Of current smokers and alcohol users in the age 15-24 year group. Deaths due to
suicides was highest among females in the 21-30 year age group
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: gender
equality and empowering young women
Equal
education
A/L Stream (M, S and Arts)
Admission to university
(2010: 605, 2006: 54%)
Admission to vocational
training (Increased , majority
male)
Female
labour
force
Labour force
participation (Female:
30%, high estate)
Women at wage
employment (35%, 1%
increase)
Women in managerial
positions (1.5%, doubled
from 2006)
Women
leadership
Women entrepreneurships
(<10%)
Political participation (<6%)
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: youth and
environment
93
92
85
92
92
92
77
91
7
8
15
8
8
8
23
9
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Securedhouses
Unsecuredhouses
Youth living under secure housing
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Safe housing
Change from 2006-
2010
National: 91 to 92%
Urban: 92 to 93%
Rural: 92%
Estate: 77 to 85%
Achievement of youth MDGs: youth and
environment
97
94
97
93
91
93
96
93
3
6
3
7
9
7
4
7
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Securesanitation
Unsecuresanitation
Youth having access to secure sanitation
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Secure sanitation
Change from 2006-
2010
National: 93%
Urban: 91 to 97%
Rural: 93 to 94%
Estate: 96 to 97%
Achievement of youth MDGs: youth and
environment
Youth having access to safe drinking water
92
95
73
94
87
84
68
83
8
5
27
6
13
16
32
17
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Protected
Unprotected
Safe drinking water
Change from 2006-
2010
National: 83 to 94%
Urban: 87 to 92%
Rural: 84 to 95%
Estate: 68 to 73%
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Infrastructure
and ICT for youth
94
94
90
94
94
88
90
89
6
6
10
6
6
12
10
11
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Yes
No
Electricity provision for youth
Electricity
Change from 2006-
2010
National: 89 to 94%
Urban: 94%
Rural: 88 to 94%
Estate: 90%
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Infrastructure
and ICT for youth
Mobile phones for youth
65
61
63
61
33
26
19
27
35
39
37
39
67
74
81
73
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Have
Havenot
Mobile phone
Change from 2006-2010
National: 27 to 61%
Urban: 33 to 65%
Rural: 26 to 61%
Estate: 19 to 63%
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Achievement of youth MDGs: Infrastructure
and ICT for youth
11
9
16
10
7
5
3
5
89
91
84
90
93
95
97
95
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
Urban
Rural
Estate
National
2
0
1
0
2
0
0
6
Have
Havenot
Desktop computers for youth
Source: Youth and development, Institute of Policy Studies, 2013
Computers
Change from 2006-2010
National: 5 to10%
Urban: 7 to11%
Rural: 5 to 9%
Estate: 3 to 16%
Challenges and way forward
There are issues of skill mismatch, youth foregoing available private sector
employment for public sector employment, and more youth staying on in education
till late stages of their youth life. Youth need to focus on making better decisions in
selecting their educational paths and they needed to be guided by teachers and
parents
Spending more years studying lowers the youth labor force participation rate. Youth
have to be certain of what they are acquiring as educational qualifications, and
whether that is what employers are demanding in todays job market.
Inability to secure finances, lack of financial management capabilities, and most
importantly, the inability to assess and understand business viability, has constrained
youth entrepreneurs. Therefore guidance , financial support as well as training on
business management is very essential
Challenges and way forward
Poor and vulnerable households lack the capacity to spend on education and health,
aggravating the physical abilities of poor youth to be work force ready. Therefore, poverty
alleviation programme should focus on financial assistance, as well as on eradicating
educational and heath barriers faced by the youth.
Vocational education will only address the issue of youth unemployment and low
labour force participation only if the vocational education system is linked with the
industries that can absorb these students. Therefore, public-private partnerships and
schemes of recruitments through vocational education and training institutes directly to
the industry, are essential.
Teenage pregnancy, especially in the estate sector, is a serious issue to be considered.
One of the main reasons is a lack of awareness on reproductive health. Not only this,
youth need to be aware on HIV/AIDS and STDs, and also use of tobacco and alcohol.
They needed to be guided on handling pressure and making better and informed decisions
on their lives and day to day activities.
Thank You