Evidence synthesis: Workplace Based Learning and Youth Employment in Africa

Zenobia Ismail, Sithandiwe Mujuru
What is it?

In the frame of the ‘Boosting decent employment for Africa’s youth partnership between INCLUDE, IDRC and ILO, under the umbrella of the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth, a series of evidence synthesis papers will be released in the coming years. Led by INCLUDE, these papers will take stock of existing evidence on themes relevant to the youth employment debate. This third paper in the series was prepared by Zenobia Ismail and Sithandiwe Mujuru from the Governance and Social Development Resource Centre (GSDRC) at the University of Birmingham. ‘Workplace Based Learning and Youth Employment in Africa’ reviews and synthesises literature on the evidence on workplace-based learning interventions in Africa.

HIGHLIGHTS

Workplace-based learning is more effective as a youth employment intervention if supported with policies that stimulate demand for young workers. Such policies encompass developing priority sectors in the economy and providing effective labour market information systems, which can better coordinate the supply of skills with the demand for workers. In addition, it is essential to improve the quality of general primary and secondary education as this provides critical foundation skills that enhance the employment prospects of people engaged in workplace-based learning activities.