Millions of Algerian Youths to Get Free Entrepreneurship Training
Algeria-based non-profit organisation Injaz El Jazair has become a dominant player in the country, training young people in entrepreneurship, employability and financial education literacy. Established in October 2019 by Ms. Leen Abdel Jaber,
Injaz (Arabic for achievement) is patterned after a US-based youth organization, Junior Achievement, which operates in many African countries, including Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, as well as in other regions of the world.
The organization’s goal is to prepare young Africans for the 21st century workforce, which requires skilled employees in the private and public sectors.
In starting the outfit, Ms. Jaber, the Jordanian-born executive who now lives in Algeria, wanted to offer young people in Africa the opportunity to develop their business leadership skills, including business planning, critical thinking and effective communication.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for young people in Algeria to think about the jobs environment of the future and prepare themselves accordingly, says Ms. Jaber, the Executive Director of Injaz El Jazair, in an interview with Africa Renewal.
There are about 10.7 million Algerians between ages 19 and 25, or 30 per cent of the population. According to UNESCO, despite the high enrollment rates in tertiary institutions – 51.4 per cent Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) in 2018 – coupled with the fact that a growing number of women are attending university (64.4 percent GER in 2018), unemployment remains a major challenge in the country.
The unemployment rate in 2019 was 11.4 per cent. Sadly, while unemployment for men improved from 9.5 per cent in 2018 to 9.1 per cent in 2019, the rate for women declined from 19.5 percent to 20.4 percent during the same period. High youth unemployment underpins the seriousness with which Ms. Jaber is implementing her training programmes. She points out that many young people in Algeria are not guided through their career and that they lack access to professional communities that can prepare them for work.
The young people themselves are eager to develop new skill sets that will enable them to meet the demands of the labour market and they are looking for international opportunities to gain work experience, she says.
The prospects of securing a job after university education were already dim even before COVID–19. The pandemic has only worsened the economic outlook and the financial risk for young people. Nevertheless, with universities shut down, students have had time to participate in different skills-building programs offered by organizations like Injaz El Jazair.”Being part of a global learning network, thinking ahead and having an adaptive mindset are keys for students and mentors who use technology platforms such as Teams to successfully attend online entrepreneurship classes during lockdown,” says Ms. Jaber. She further explains that the pandemic has helped accelerate the integration of new technologies for distance learning, expanding youth participation in training programmes.
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