- Zambian youth (aged 18-35) are better educated than their elders: More than six in 10 (63%) have secondary or post-secondary qualifications, compared to 37%-43% among older cohorts (Figure 1).
- More than half (54%) of 18- to 35-year-olds say they are jobless and looking for work, while only one-fifth are working either part time (11%) or full time (9%) (Figure 2). o In total, 14% of young Zambians are currently studying.
- Aside from the country’s general economic situation and scarcity of jobs, young people cite the following as their most important barriers to employment: a lack of training (28%), a skills mismatch (18%), a lack of work experience (16%), and a lack of entrepreneurial zeal (14%) (Figure 3).
- Given a choice of jobs, about half (49%) of Zambian youth would prefer to start their own businesses. Next in popularity is working for the government (37%) (Figure 4)
- If the government could increase its spending on youth programmes, job creation would be young people’s top priority for greater investment (cited by 37%), followed by access to business loans (21%), education (21%), and job training (15%) (Figure 5).
Young Zambians are more educated than older generations, but more than half are unemployed, according to the latest Afrobarometer survey. Only one in five of those aged 18-35 years are currently working.
Zambian youth are most likely to see inadequate training as the primary barrier to youth employment. Other barriers cited include, in order of significance, a mismatch between educational attainment and job requirements, a lack of work experience, and a deficit of entrepreneurial spirit.
If young Zambians could choose their own jobs, half would elect to start their own businesses, while nearly two-fifths would prefer to work in the public sector.
First on a list of priorities for additional government spending on youth programmes is job creation, cited by almost four in 10 young adults.