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OECD Development Policy Tools

Evidence-based Policy Making for Youth Well-being

A Toolkit

Please cite this publication as:
OECD (2017), Evidence-based Policy Making for Youth Well-being: A Toolkit, OECD Development Policy Tools, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264283923-en.

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ISBN: 978-92-64-28407-4 (epub) - 978-92-64-28387-9 (print) - 978-92-64-28392-3 (pdf)

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264283923-en

Series: OECD Development Policy Tools

ISSN: 2518-6248 (print) - 2518-3702 (online)

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Foreword

Today’s world youth population aged 15 to 24 is 1.2 billion people strong and represents the largest cohort ever to be transitioning to adulthood. Over 85% of them live in developing countries and, in many places, they represent as much as 30% of the population and the numbers keep growing. Many developing countries have the potential to realise a demographic dividend, if the right social and economic policies and investments are in place. As such, youth is increasingly taking centre stage in policy debates as a driver of development. Targeting young people requires, however, addressing challenges on multiple fronts, from getting decent employment and quality education to accessing youth-friendly health services and becoming active citizens.

Timely interventions directed at young people are likely to yield a greater return for sustainable development than attempts to fix problems later in life. Gaps in initial education and skills, for example, are forcing too many young people to leave the school system at an early age, unprepared for work and life. Today, one out of four children in the world drops out of primary education. Surprisingly, no progress has been made on this over the last decade. Youth joblessness and vulnerable employment are widespread; young people are three times more likely to be unemployed than adults. Adolescent reproductive and sexual health needs are poorly addressed while new health risks have emerged. Not all youth have equal opportunities for mobility, and too many young people remain excluded from decision-making processes that affect their lives.

The opportunity to close the youth well-being gap is however real. Measuring and analysing the problems of disadvantaged youth is a prerequisite for developing evidence-based policies for youth. Sharing good practices and exchanging information on what works or not play a crucial role in youth policy making in both developing and advanced economies. Policies that intervene at critical stages can significantly reduce the risks of youth becoming further disadvantaged. For example, facilitating the transition to the world of work through labour market counselling and comprehensive on-the-job training services is helping youth economic inclusion. Evidence also suggests that cultural and creative activities, violence prevention programmes and juvenile justice services can support active citizenship among the youth population.

The Youth Inclusion Project, co-financed by the European Union and implemented by the OECD Development Centre, analyses these aspects in ten developing and emerging economies (Cambodia, Côte d’Ivoire, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Jordan, Malawi, Moldova, Peru, Togo and Viet Nam) through Youth Well-being Policy Reviews. It provides evidence and concrete advice on how to assess youth challenges from a multi-dimensional perspective and how to involve youth in national development processes. The reviews use the analytical framework and tools developed in this toolkit to shed light on the determinants of youth vulnerabilities and what constitutes successful transitions in each of the countries. Tapping into the evidence to design better policies is one of the best ways to minimise challenges and maximise the potential, turning the youth bulge into a youth dividend. The Youth Inclusion Project is part of the work of the Development Centre on inclusive societies and aims to support countries to find innovative solutions to social challenges and to build more cohesive societies.

Mario Pezzini

Director, OECD Development Centre and Special Advisor to the OECD Secretary-General on Development

Acknowledgments

Evidence-based Policy Making for Youth Well-being: A Toolkit was prepared by the OECD Development Centre as part of the Youth Inclusion Project under the overall guidance of Mario Pezzini, Director of the Development Centre and Special Advisor to the Secretary-General on Development, OECD, and Alexandre Kolev, Head of the Social Cohesion Unit of the OECD Development Centre. The toolkit was drafted by Alexandre Kolev, Ji-Yeun Rim, Project Co-ordinator, Pablo Suarez Robles, Economist, Ian Brand-Weiner, Policy Analyst and Mathilde Tarif of the OECD Development Centre. Research assistance was provided by Jonathan Broekhuizen. The manuscript was edited by Jessica Hutchings and its publication co-ordinated by Delphine Grandrieux.

An expert consultation meeting held in March 2015 contributed to shaping and setting the conceptual framework of the toolkit. Valuable inputs were provided by Chandrani Banerjee, Technical Advisor for HSS and RMNCH, The Global Fund, Geneva, Switzerland; Doortje Braeken, Senior Adviser & Team leader Adolescents/Young People, Gender and Rights, International Planned Parenthood Federation; Aaron Benavot, Director, Education for All Global Monitoring Report, UNESCO; Sara Elder, Labour Economist and CTA of Work4Youth Project, ILO; David Garrahy, Policy and Advocacy Coordinator, European Youth Forum; Javier Herrera, Research Director at IRD; Sarah Huxley, International Youth Policy Adviser ActionAid; Gloria La Cava, MENA Region Youth Co-Coordinator, the World Bank; Massimiliano Mascherini, Research Manager, Eurofound; Furio Camillo Rosati, Project Manager, Understanding Children’s Work; Bernd Seiffert, Local Institutions and Rural Livelihoods Officer, FAO; Romina Boarini, Head of Section, OECD Statistics Directorate; Juan De Laiglesia, Senior Economist, OECD Development Centre; and Pierce O’Reilly, Economist, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration.

The toolkit benefited from contributions from the OECD Development Centre’s Governing Board members, notably Chile, Japan, Israel, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain and Uruguay who provided examples of country programmes for youth.

The review is part of the Youth Inclusion Project, implemented by the OECD Development Centre. The financial contribution of the European Union is gratefully acknowledged.

Executive summary

Today’s youth population (aged 15-24) of 1.2 billion people represents the largest cohort ever to enter the transition to adulthood. The majority of these young people, 88%, live in developing countries, and the numbers will practically double in the least developed countries. These young people are the world’s next generation and a unique asset. If properly nurtured, they can act as engines for economic and social progress. However, if policies and programmes fail to reach young people, particularly disadvantaged youth, and fail to give them a voice in decision-making processes, the youth bulge may well apply a brake to economic and social development, leading to increasing poverty, illegal migration, failed citizenship, or worse, social unrest.

In this context, the political will has grown among many national governments to develop comprehensive policy frameworks that better respond to young peoples’ needs and aspirations. Efforts to support more effective policies for young people are reflected in the fact that, today, nearly two out of three countries in the world have a national youth policy. Notwithstanding these advances, a number of challenges remain that undermine both the efficiency and the inclusiveness of youth policies, from fragmented responsibilities and weak implementation ministries to the lack of reliable knowledge and data, insufficient analytical and financial resources, difficulty in voicing the needs of disadvantaged groups or the absence of appropriate monitoring and evaluation systems.

The Development Centre of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), with co-financing from the European Union (EU) is implementing a three-year project on Youth Inclusion (2014-2017). The project supported governments of ten¹ developing countries to improve policies and programmes for youth. A multi-sectoral approach was used to assess the situation of youth, to identify the most vulnerable ones and to analyse what determines youth vulnerabilities and successful transitions. The analyses were carried out in the participating countries using a common analytical framework, adapting the OECD Well-being framework. Five key dimensions of well-being were selected to measure the situation of youth: education, skills and employment, health, civic participation and empowerment, and some aspects of subjective well-being.

The present toolkit includes step-by-step modules to carry out a youth well-being diagnosis and includes practical examples of common youth policies and programmes in the areas of employment, education and skills, health and civic participation. The toolkit builds on the important work of the OECD and its development partners to date. While the methodologies presented in the toolkit are applicable in all countries, many examples focus on developing countries, where the majority of disadvantaged youth live.

The toolkit is divided into two parts: Part I presents the conceptual framework that underlines the toolkit and describes the different challenges and needs of youth as they go through transitions in life. A life cycle approach recognises that adverse and unequal youth outcomes are often attributable to circumstances at birth and during early childhood. The framework also emphasises the multi-dimensionality of youth well-being and the causal linkages between the different dimensions. An inventory of common youth policies and programmes, including concrete international examples, follows. Part I is primarily intended for decision makers as a briefing note on youth-related issues, concepts and policy benchmarks.

Part II, which is intended for technical experts and policy analysts, provides a step-by-step methodological guide to carry out in-depth analyses on the situation of youth and to profile vulnerable youth using empirical evidence. It includes six modules that can be used at different phases in the policy-making cycle:

Module 1 proposes a series of indicators, adapted from the OECD Well-being framework, to measure deficits in selected well-being dimensions and introduces a new indicator to estimate the extent of youth multi-dimensional deprivation (Y-MDI).

Module 2 explains how to establish a profile of disadvantaged youth by identifying the determinants of poor well-being outcomes.

Module 3 presents tools to assess the policy and institutional environment, drawing specific attention to the interplay between policies, institutions, social norms and youth well-being.

Module 4 presents tools to evaluate the impact and cost-effectiveness of youth interventions and programmes.

Module 5 introduces ways to calculate the costs of inaction and youth exclusion.

Module 6 presents approaches to support the voices of young people in national decision-making processes.

This toolkit is intended to help governments better monitor and evaluate youth-specific programmes and improve policies dedicated to youth using evidence. Country reviews carried out by the project using this toolkit identifies gaps in youth well-being that will help advocate for more investment in youth projects and programmes. A common approach to youth diagnosis will provide comparable data, allowing countries to share good practices and exchange information on policies that work or not. Evidence-based analysis is necessary to improve youth policy making in both developing and advanced economies.

This toolkit is not intended to be prescriptive, nor does it attempt to provide all answers. Feedback on the content and presentation of the methodology will be used to guide future revisions, with the understanding that policy reform programmes, however well-designed, are unlikely to be sustainable or even implemented without full country ownership supported by a large degree of national consensus.

Note

 1. Cambodia, Côte d’Ivoire, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Jordan, Malawi, Moldova, Peru, Togo and Viet Nam.

Part I.

Conceptual framework and inventory of youth programmes: A guide for policy makers

Chapter 1.

The conceptual framework of youth programmes

This section introduces the various concepts used in this toolkit. It starts by defining youth, beyond the definition of age. It describes the individual and environmental factors that can influence a young person’s well-being. The life cycle approach and the causal linkages between different life transitions are explained. Finally, it emphasises the need to identify and focus policies on the most disadvantaged youth, calling for targeted policies for those young people already suffering from certain deprivations and for those at risk of falling into deprivation.

Defining youth

Youth commonly refers to the transitions from childhood to adulthood, a time of great change during which young people experience rapid physical and emotional development. This period involves several stages with specific opportunities and challenges: attending school, becoming sexually active, accessing paid work, making independent decisions and becoming accountable for the consequences, forming close relationships outside the family circle, and exercising citizenship. These transitions might be longer or shorter, depending on the prevailing social and legal norms, as well as the cultural and economic context. That said, specifying an age group is often needed to monitor youth development and well-being outcomes. The United Nations (UN) defines a young person as aged 15-24, while the African Union defines it as aged 15-35. Several UN entities, instruments, regional organisations and countries have somewhat different definitions of youth. For the purpose of this framework, the terms “youth” or “young people” are used interchangeably and generally refer to the age group 15-24 (or sometimes 15-29) to capture issues related to school-to-work transitions. Early childhood and adolescence is taken into account in determinant analyses in order to capture the life cycle effects.

Risk factors and youth environments

Although most young people go through adolescence and enter adulthood with few problems, a large number, especially in low- and middle-income countries, are exposed to risk factors that threaten their development and well-being (United Nations Development Programme [UNDP], 2014; Cunningham et al., 2008; World Bank, 2006; United Nations Children’s Fund [UNICEF], 2011). Many risk factors are rooted in the interplay between a young person’s environment and individual characteristics. Individual traits refer to physiological, cognitive and psychological attributes of individuals, as well as biological aspects, such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or disability status. Youth environment relates to i) family circumstances, including household poverty, poor care, lack of parental support or violence in the household; ii) community circumstances, such as negative peer influences, community violence, lack or poor quality of schools, or inadequate basic infrastructure and public services; iii) social institutions, norms and values, such as restricted civil liberties, gender discriminatory social norms or harmful traditional practices; and iv) policies and macro circumstances, such as weak social policies, inadequate judicial systems, joblessness and unsustainable growth policies, conflict and wars, or climate change and hazardous environments that affect young people’s lives (Figure 1.1).

Figure 1.1. Environment and factors affecting a young person’s well-being

Source: Authors’ own elaboration.

A life cycle perspective on youth well-being

Risk factors are not homogeneously distributed over the life cycle. There are age-specific risks that are typically higher in earlier stages of life, with long-term and sometimes irreversible consequences in later stages of life (Table 1.1). Recognising that past experience matters for youth outcomes, and that youth outcomes will influence future outcomes, adopting a life cycle approach allows identifying both the right timing and nature of interventions and the synergies across sectors and ages.

Table 1.1. Selected risk factors and poor well-being outcomes over the life cycle

| Prenatal and at birth | Early childhood (0-5) | Middle childhood (6-14) | Adolescence (15-17) | Youth and early adulthood (18-29) | Adulthood | Old age

Risk factors

Income poverty

Poor nutrition

Maternal infections

Environmental pollution

Poor care

Domestic violence

Inadequate basic infrastructure and public services

Income poverty

Poor nutrition

Infection and disease

Environmental pollution

Poor care and cognitive stimulation

Domestic violence

Inadequate basic infrastructure and public services

Income poverty

Poor nutrition

Lack of parental support

Low availability and quality of schools

Domestic and community violence

Early pregnancy and marriage

Child labour

Discriminatory social institutions and norms

Child soldiers

Early pregnancy and marriage of unemployed adolescent girls out of school

No adequate vocational training in rural areas and distance to schools far from home

Limited access to finance or co-operatives due to status as minors

Discrimination in getting ‘decent’ jobs due to status as minors although legally employable

Exclusion from youth support programmes due to age

Work in hazardous conditions (considered child labour)

Income poverty

Poor nutrition

Lack of parental support

Anti-social peers

Low availability and quality of schools

Inadequate sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services

Domestic and community violence

Lack of information on and voice in decision-making processes

Discriminatory social institutions and norms

Risky behaviours (disengagement from school, substance abuse, violent and criminal activities, soldiering)

Risky behaviours (substance abuse)

Lack of voice and participation in decision-making processes

Lack of social protection

Crime and violence

Lack of voice and participation in decision-making processes

Lack of social protection

Crime and violence

Poor well-being outcomes

Maternal mortality

Premature birth

Low birth weight

Infant mortality

Physical and cognitive deficits

Infant and child morbidity and mortality

Poor physical and intellectual growth

Deficit in psychosocial skills

Failure to enrol in school

School drop-out

Low school performance

Poor income

Work in hazardous and exploitative labour

Health complications from early pregnancy

Low school performance

Deficit in psychosocial skills

Lack of employment

Work in hazardous and exploitative labour

Poor health status

Suicide and premature death

Income poverty

Illiteracy

Joblessness and deficits in high-quality jobs

Poor health

Poor housing and infrastructure

Social isolation

Weak empowerment and participation

Poor life evaluation

Income poverty

Illiteracy

Poor health

Poor housing and infrastructure

Social isolation

Weak empowerment and participation

Poor life evaluation

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Research shows causal risk factors over the life cycle:

Around birth and during early childhood, income poverty, poor nutrition, environmental risks and poor care are major causal factors for adverse outcomes, such as severe health consequences and low cognitive and physical development (Engle et al., 2007; Kroenke, 2008; Walker et al., 2007; Wachs and Rahman, 2013).

During the school years, low availability and quality of schools, lack of parental support, domestic and community violence, and discriminatory social institutions and norms are additional risk factors that can lead to poor school engagement (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO], 2009, 2010, 2011).

During adolescence and early adulthood, when school is no longer compulsory, and in the absence of a protective youth environment, young people may engage in risky behaviours that can then lead to severe negative outcomes, such as low school performance, poor non-cognitive skills (e.g. conscientiousness, emotional stability, empathy), joblessness, low-quality jobs, or worse, suicide and premature death (World Bank, 2007).

Youth aged 15-17 face particular challenges, as they have reached puberty and legal working age but are still legally minors. Girls are particularly vulnerable to early pregnancy. Moreover, young people in this age group are especially vulnerable to taking up poor-quality jobs, exposing them to health and safety hazards and low pay. While they are of legal age to work in most countries, if they are below 18 and doing hazardous work it is considered child labour according to the ILO Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour. This stage in life is typically decisive in how youth transition from school to work and transition out of poverty.

Youth aged 18-24 confront additional challenges. They are no longer protected by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and are legally considered adult in most countries. However, biological and psychological research about maturity suggests that young people in that age group may still be immature and that treating them as adults can lead to worse outcomes, especially when it comes to teen crimes.

During adulthood, low educational achievement and poor health become major causes of income poverty, mainly due to lower wages and higher unemployment, while the absence of social protection coverage becomes a major risk factor (International Labour Organization [ILO], 2014).

During old age, lack of a pension or inadequate pension contributions is a key determinant of poverty among the elderly (ILO, 2014).

Identifying disadvantaged youth

The problems of disadvantaged youth involve the interaction of risk factors, age-related transitions and public interventions. Measuring and analysing the problems of disadvantaged youth are crucial for policy-making purposes (to identify disadvantaged youth, understand the determinants of poor well-being outcomes, design better policies for youth and build more cohesive societies), as well as for monitoring and evaluation purposes (to assess the impact of current interventions and measure progress in youth well-being). Various definitions and concepts of disadvantaged youth exist; this toolkit focuses on three of its common aspects. First, “disadvantage” refers to the risk for experiencing – or the experience of – deprivation in well-being throughout the youth life phase, highlighting the important link between past experiences and future well-being outcomes. Second, the toolkit recognises the multi-dimensional nature of youth well-being, encompassing both material and non-material dimensions and objective and subjective aspects. Hence, it recognises that young people’s perceptions of their lives are important, alongside the objective dimensions (OECD, 2013). Third, the toolkit highlights the relational aspects of youth well-being, recognising that development is not just about doing better individually but about promoting social cohesion and living together in a better way.

From a policy perspective, it is also important to assess the extent of youth disadvantage. Young people who face risks in different areas that multiply and reinforce each other are already considered disadvantaged. They become further disadvantaged when these risks lead to deprivations in one or more well-being dimensions and when there are few or no effective policies in place to prevent or mitigate such risks (prevention programmes) or to remedy the negative consequences once they have occurred (second chance programmes). Policy can target two groups in the continuum of disadvantaged situations:

Youth at risk: young people who are exposed to risk factors but who have not yet suffered negative well-being outcomes. They require preventive measures.

Deprived youth: young people who already experience deprivation in one or more dimensions of well-being as a result of their exposure to risk factors. They require second chance programmes.

This categorisation is theoretical in the sense that many policies and programmes in fact serve both preventive and second chance purposes, and most youth who are deprived in one area are often at risk for further deprivation at the same time. However, the distinction is helpful to target the beneficiaries and better design programmes. The focus on disadvantaged youth in this toolkit reflects the reality in many developing countries, where the majority of the young people are often already school drop-outs and have poor-quality and low-paid jobs and little or no access to health care or social protections. These conditions make it difficult for even highly motivated youth to thrive and achieve their goals. By looking at disadvantaged youth and their obstacles, the toolkit brings attention to what policies can do to provide the most conducive environment to unlock the potential of youth.

Chapter 2.

An inventory of common policies and programmes for youth

This section provides an inventory of youth policies and programmes frequently used around the world. Some work well in certain countries, but success factors are often context-specific. The following is a non-exhaustive list of policies and programmes in four sectors: employment, education and skills, health, and civic participation and empowerment. Distinction is made as to whether it is a second chance programme for already deprived youth or a preventive programme for youth at risk. While the evidence base may not be strong for all policies and programmes, many are well-established and promising. Impact evaluations have been carried out for many, and their results are mentioned when available.

Employment

A successful transition into the world of work can reduce youth poverty and economic exclusion. However, some youth either start working too early or are never able to enter the work force. Others may end up stuck in low-productivity, low-paid jobs leaving them no option but to leave their home or country. Facilitating the transition into the world of work through both demand and supply side interventions is becoming more and more central in the policy agenda of governments around the world. Active labour market policies (ALMPs) deal specifically with employment problems and include programmes such as subsidised credits, business start-up, training, wage subsidies and public work. Often, however, these programmes target people registered as unemployed, mostly in urban areas, and not necessarily youth, missing a majority of rural youth and those in informal employment. Youth-specific ALMPs can play an important role in filling those gaps, but impact tends to vary according to the nature of the programmes, design issues and country context.

Active labour market programmes

Employment services

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Employment services are common in many developed and developing countries. Their main purpose is to match job offers with job seekers. Services include job search and placement, labour intermediation services, labour information systems, career counselling and mentoring services for people with difficulties in finding employment. Employment services provide job seekers with information on job opportunities and prepare them for employment by increasing their employability and improving their employment prospects. Although employment services are generally designed to benefit the working population, they can include youth-specific programmes.

Do they work? Employment services are relatively inexpensive compared to other active labour market programmes and usually show positive results. An impact evaluation of 26 employment services programmes in both developed and developing countries concluded that 16 had positive employment effect, including 11 with positive earnings effects, mostly in developed and transition countries (Betcherman, Olivas and Dar, 2004). More evidence is needed from developing countries, where informal sectors are large and hiring takes place informally. Such programmes are also most effective under favourable economic conditions. Employment services should offer a comprehensive package that includes career guidance; education (formal and non-formal); skills training (soft and hard); information and communication technology (ICT) training; access to cultural, social and sport activities; and social services (child care, transport, etc.). A critical issue is to ensure that vulnerable youth are able to access these services.

Example: BW Jobs 4 Graduates, Botswana

BW Jobs 4 Graduates is a youth-led organisation registered under the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs of Botswana that offers various services to assist youth in finding employment opportunities. Job search and training services are offered free of charge to youth, while employers are charged a fee for advertising. A short message service (SMS) enables youth to receive vacancy announcements and interview reminders on their mobiles. BW Jobs 4 Graduates organises workshops and career fairs across the country to guide youth on what career paths to choose considering their profile and the current labour market situation. The seminars also reach out to potential financing agencies to support youth entrepreneurs. Young people can post their curriculum vitae, and employers can post job vacancies on a web platform. Beneficiaries are consulted on a monthly basis using qualitative and quantitative methods (document review, online or one-to-one interviews, and informal meetings).

Eligibility: Youth population

Similar initiatives: Nuorten Yhteiskuntatakuu (Youth Guarantee), Finland; The Werk (Work) platform, the Netherlands

Employment subsidies

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Employment subsidies aim to encourage new hires by reducing the cost to employers. These programmes seek to increase employment opportunities for eligible young people by temporarily subsidising employers’ wage costs. Subsidies are provided when hiring an entitled unemployed worker for a specified period of time (usually six months in transition countries to two years in developed countries). Employment subsidy schemes can consist of reductions in an employer’s social security contributions, a reduction in labour and wage costs or direct payment to the employee. Such programmes are particularly useful in helping to integrate low-skilled youth or long-term unemployed youth, since employers are often reluctant to take on young, inexperienced workers, particularly if minimum wages are set at a level above the expected productivity of such workers.

Do they work? Most evaluations conclude that the overall effect of wage subsidies on youth employment is positive (OECD, 2015; Bördos, Csillag and Scharle, 2015), although with notable drawbacks. First, targeting is one of the main issues, where programmes benefit those who would have found a job even without the subsidy. However, when targeted to youth with the greatest employment difficulties – the low-skilled, the low-educated and the long-term unemployed – the human capital gained on the job during longer subsidised periods can enable these youth to stay employed in unsubsidised jobs in the long run. Second, a heavy administrative burden deters participation by firms and should therefore be simplified. Finally, there is evidence that wage subsidies are most effective when combined with other employability programmes, such as job search services and training (van Reenen, 003; Katz, 1996). It is also important to keep in mind that youth wage subsidies alone will not create a large number of new jobs and have to be combined with labour market reforms.

Example: Youth Wage Subsidies and Tax Incentive Act, South Africa

Launched in 2010, the Youth Wage Subsidies programme in South Africa provided employment vouchers to unemployed young South Africans to reduce the wage costs for firms. Vouchers were handed out to randomly selected unemployed youth aged 20-24, entitling the holder to a subsidy with a total value of ZAR 5 000 (South African rand; approximately USD 650 [American dollars] in 2010), which could be claimed over a minimum of six months and until the total amount was used. The maximum monthly amount of the subsidy was half the wage or ZAR 833, and the subsidy was transferable between companies before exhaustion. After this pilot phase, in 2014, the government launched the Employment Tax Incentive Act, which introduced the wage subsidy nation-wide. This new scheme offers tax incentives for up to two years to employers who hire low- to mid-level wage earners (earning between ZAR 2 000 and ZAR 6 000) aged 18-29. The incentive amount differs based on the salary paid to each qualifying employee. An impact evaluation shows that young people who used the vouchers were significantly more likely to remain in employment one and two years after the voucher had been exhausted than those not benefiting from the vouchers (Levinsohn et al., 2014).

Eligibility: Low- and mid-level wage earners aged 18-29

Example: Employment Service Package Programme (ESPP) for Youth, South Korea

Since 2011, ESPP for Youth is a comprehensive employment service programme targeted at young jobseekers at risk of dropping out of the workforce. The programme provides 12 months support in three stages: career guidance, training or work experience, and job placement services. Modest financial incentives and income support are also provided. Each participant is expected to develop an Individual Action Plan (IAP) to receive one of the following services: 1) fully covered vocational training; 2) 3-5 months of paid work experience in a non-profit organisation or government-organisation or a SME with wage subsidized by the government; 3) support to start a business through training and loans. Some 15 000 youth received training in 2009-10 in response to the economic crisis and 63% found jobs after completing the programme. Public spending on active labour market policies for youth increased from 0.02% of GDP in 2002 to 0.09% in 2007. ESPP is one of the few programmes that focus on disadvantaged youth as opposed to university students and graduates. The programme is also extended to low income people and long term job seekers.

Eligibility: people with low income, youth who are less educated and long term job-seekers

Similar initiatives: Subsidio al Empleo Joven (Subsidies for youth employment), Chile; Stage d’initiation à la vie professionnelle (Initiation Internship to Professional Life), Tunisia

Sub-minimum wage for youth

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Sub-minimum wage for youth consists of employing young individuals at wages below the minimum wage. This scheme allows low-productive youth to enter the labour market, while at the same time the wage encourages them to complete their education. Sub-minimum wages for teenagers are a common strategy across OECD countries to counter the potentially negative impact of the minimum wage on youth employment. In OECD countries, the sub-minimum wage for youth is, on average, three-quarters of the adult minimum wage, varying between 25% and 50% depending on the young person’s years of experience. A sub-minimum wage makes particular sense in the case of apprentices, as young people’s productivity is lower at the beginning of an apprenticeship.

Do they work? When the minimum wage is set too high, it can have unemployment and informality effects on least-skilled workers, as well as on the very young. However, a sub-minimum wage scheme may institutionalise the incidence of low-paid jobs among youth and lead to segmented labour markets where youth find it difficult to move to higher-paid jobs. There is a need for a sound legislative framework for minimum wages. Labour inspectors should enforce labour law and act in case of systematic non-compliance. The impact of minimum wages on employment and working hours has to be evaluated on a regular basis through well-developed evaluation methods which meet high quality standards.

Example: Youth Minimum Wage, United States

The 1996 Amendments to the Fair Labour Standards Act allow employers to pay employees under age 20 a lower wage (not less than USD 4.25 per hour) during the first 90 consecutive calendar days (not work days) after they are first employed. The law contains protections for employees that prohibit employers from displacing any employee to hire someone at the youth minimum wage.

Eligibility: Employees under age 20

Similar initiatives: Youth Minimum Wage, New Zealand, Tunisia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg

Entrepreneurship programmes

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Entrepreneurship (or self-employment) programmes aim to equip people with the skills needed to establish and manage profitable businesses that can become permanent jobs. Support can be in the form of financial assistance (credits, allowances or grants) and/or other technical services, such as skills training, counselling, mentoring, business infrastructure, development of a business plan, etc. Training can be delivered in a variety of settings, including formal education, job training institutions, business incubation centres, small and medium-sized enterprise development agencies, and industry organisations. Training can be provided to all those interested or targeted specifically to youth or vulnerable groups, such as the newly or long-term unemployed (World Bank, 2008).

Do they work? Evidence on the effect of micro-enterprise programmes on employment is scarce. These programmes tend to be more successful when mentoring and business counselling are provided in addition to financial aid (Betcherman, Olivas and Dar, 2004). Partnerships with the business community, where business leaders serve as mentors as well as a support network, prove to be helpful. Special outreach and information campaigns may be required to reach vulnerable youth, who may be more reluctant to become self-employed due to feelings of social exclusion, lack of self-confidence, a low level of education, no access to financial resources, or limited social networks and support systems.

Example: Programa de Calificación de Jóvenes Creadores de Microempresas (Young Micro Entrepreneurs’ Qualification Programme), Peru

The Programa de Calificación de Jóvenes Creadores de Microempresas started in 1999 as an initiative of the Peruvian non-governmental organisation (NGO) Colectivo Integral de Desarrollo to counteract the lack of entrepreneurial skills among young people. A comprehensive package of training on developing business plans, individual counselling, internships, credit, and services after business creation were provided. The beneficiaries could obtain loans from an external financial institution. An evaluation of the programme indicated an increase of almost 40 percentage points in the probability of a business operating longer than a year and an increase in earnings of 40 percentage points compared to the control group (Puerto, 2007). An important secondary effect was the job creation. Beneficiaries employ 17.3% more workers than the control group.

Eligibility: Economically disadvantaged young people aged 15-25 who have entrepreneurial skills or own a small and/or informal business with less than a year of operation.

Similar initiatives: Giovani per la valorizzazione dei beni pubblici (Youth for the promotion of public Goods, 2013), Italy; aimed at promoting and developing public goods through youth social entrepreneurship in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Puglia and Sicily.

Public works programmes

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Public works programmes aim to reduce unemployment rates, especially among disadvantaged workers, by offering temporary employment, mainly in the public sector, at a prescribed wage. These programmes usually focus on the provision of temporary income support to long-term unemployed individuals. They are not youth-specific but can be designed to pay particular attention to young people. Public works programmes provide work experience and training, but they also play an important role as basic insurance (social protection) for the unemployed (OECD, 2015). Most often, public works programmes rely on self-selection as the primary targeting mechanism, the main selection criteria being the wage at which such work is rewarded.

Do they work? Evaluations of public works programmes show that they can provide short-term benefits in the form of an income safety net and can be useful in fighting poverty by offering temporary employment to the poorest families and workers. However, public works programmes have poor track records in developed and transition countries because of the negative stigma associated with involvement in public works (Betcherman, Olivas and Dar, 2004). These programmes also risk creating dependency among participants, hindering transition into unsubsidised employment. They have been found to be more effective when they involve the community, focus on work other than infrastructure building (e.g. social work) and offer participants skills training to help them find longer-term and sustainable employment (OECD, 2015). Recently, public work programmes have been moving in that direction.

Example: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), India

The MGNREGS provides at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every member of a rural household over age 18 who volunteers to do unskilled work. Every volunteer is entitled to the statutory minimum wage applicable in the state. Volunteers register at the gram panchayat (local village or small town government) and receive a job card, the basic legal document that enables a rural household to demand work. If employment within a 5 km radius is not provided within 15 days, additional wages of 10% must be paid, and applicants are entitled to a state unemployment allowance of not less than one-fourth of the minimum wage for the first 30 days and not less than one-half of the minimum wage for the remaining period of the financial year. Evidence shows that, on average, MGNREGS boosts the growth rate of real daily agricultural wages and constitutes a potentially important poverty reduction tool. Participation in the programme also facilitates credit acquisition, increases money income and consumption, and reduces consumption variability for vulnerable families. Even though MGNREGS’s implementation has been far from perfect, it has provided very substantial additional wage employment at a wage no lower than the prevailing wage to the rural poor.

Eligibility: Every adult over age 18

Similar initiatives: Productive Safety Net Programme, Ethiopia

Skills training programmes for youth

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Job skills training can be very useful in improving the employability and productivity of young people experiencing difficulties in finding a job (under/unemployed and disadvantaged young workers). Such training is often directed at disadvantaged youth (poorest and least-qualified) and young workers who are already in the workforce but are under/unemployed. Some firms provide on-the-job training to new employees to provide them with the required skills and increase their productivity. Training programmes vary, from developing basic job readiness to more comprehensive packages that include technical and soft skills training in classrooms and on the job. The length of a skills training programme can vary from three months to two years.

Do they work? Impact evaluation was done for 19 skills training programmes for youth, including five in developing countries (Betcherman, Olivas and Dar, 2004). All five showed a positive impact on employability, with two having a positive impact on earnings. On-the-job training and close employer involvement tend to have a greater impact than classroom training. Regular consultations with employers is therefore key to optimising the impact of these programmes. Smaller firms may be reluctant to provide on-the-job training in transferable skills for fear that other firms will poach their trained workers. Encouraging small firms to form consortia to manage training and achieve economies of scale can be a solution, as seen in Mexico, Malaysia and Korea, for example. Finally, it is important to note that training programmes can be counter-productive when job opportunities for trained workers are scarce.

Example: Jóvenes Programme (Youth Programme), Latin America and the Caribbean

The Jóvenes Programme has been implemented in eight Latin American countries, adapted to the local context. The programme offers a comprehensive package, including classroom and on-the-job training, basic life skills training, job search assistance and counselling services. It involves the private sector in the design of the training content to ensure coherence between the skills taught and those needed in the labour market. In most countries, a letter of intention from the firm is required specifying the number of interns they will hire and an acknowledgement that the content of the training corresponds to their needs. Training and internships are organised and provided by public and private institutions, which are contracted through public bidding mechanisms.

Eligibility: Unemployed and economically disadvantaged young people (poorest and least-qualified) aged 16-29

Example: Youth employment and skills development project in Cote d’Ivoire (Projet Emploi Jeune et Développement des Compétences, PEJEDEC)

The PEJEDEC project (2012-15) aims to improve access to employment and to develop technical skills of young unemployed or underemployed Ivorians aged 18 to 30 years. The project is implemented in partnership with the private sector and aims to strengthen the capacity of national institutions and to restore trust among youth towards employment services provided by the State. The PEJEDEC reached its objectives by providing training, apprenticeships, internships and jobs to more than 27 500 young people nationwide. In particular, the component THIMO (work requiring highly intensive labour) had positive impact on beneficiaries by 1) improving the quality of jobs through increased wage employment and productivity; 2) improving income by 40%; and 3) doubling the savings rate and increasing monthly expenditure of close to one third of the beneficiaries. The impact was felt most among young women. Satisfaction level among beneficiaries was also high. For example, 77% of interns declared that the work matched their qualification and 92% of apprentices were satisfied with their mentors. After the PEJEDEC programme, 28% found part-time jobs, 17% permanent jobs and 16% were self-employed. The project has been extended until 2019 with World Bank funding. The objective is to provide access to employment to 31 500 new entrants and to contribute to reform vocational training and support to public institutions. In this second phase, the project puts emphasis on self-employment and income generating activities. (OECD Development Centre, 2017)

Passive labour market programmes

Unemployment benefits for first-time job seekers

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Unemployment benefits provide unemployed people with a stipend while they search for a new job. To receive these benefits, they must register as being unemployed and prove that they are currently seeking work. However, young people who are first-time job seekers are generally not eligible for unemployment benefits, since eligibility is based on previous contributions. A special allowance designed to assist young first-time job seekers could be considered.

Do they work? Generous unemployment benefits (in terms of duration and income) provide security to eligible workers and an incentive for them to be declared and contribute towards such schemes. However, generous unemployment benefits are also associated with longer unemployment spells and higher aggregate unemployment. In developing countries, a large informal sector brings particular challenges due to the difficulty of monitoring employment in the informal sector; some recipients draw their maximum unemployment benefits while continuing to work informally.

Example: Youth Allowance, Australia

The objective of the Youth Allowance programme is to ensure that young people receive sufficient income support during their studies or job search. The programme encourages them to seek further education and training and to take up a range of activities that will promote their entry into employment. The allowance provides financial assistance to young people aged 16-21 who are looking for full-time work or undertaking approved activities. Payment rates are calculated using an income and assets test. The allowance also supports youth aged 18-24 who are studying full time; youth aged 16-24 who are undertaking a full-time apprenticeship; and youth aged 16-17 who have completed year 12 (or equivalent) or are undertaking full-time secondary studies away from home. Evaluation of the programme shows an increase in the participation rates of young beneficiaries in education and training, especially among those from disadvantaged backgrounds. The proportion of unemployed among recipients also dropped.

Eligibility: Full-time students, job seekers or full-time apprentices aged 16-24

Similar initiatives: Social assistance benefits for young job seekers, the Netherlands

Education and skills

Education and skills are crucial elements of youth well-being. Well-established and promising policies cover a broad range of interventions in the education sector. For instance, keeping (especially disadvantaged) children in the education system until at least secondary school is the most effective policy to prevent low literacy among young adults. Moreover, completing secondary school will help adolescents make informed decisions about life and career choices and build connections with adults who care and reward positive behaviours (Cunningham et al., 2008). Intervention through early child development (ECD) programmes is another area that has proven to have an impact on decreasing negative outcomes and risky behaviours in adolescence and young adulthood. Parenting skills training is a key component of ECD, especially for the very early years.

Early childhood development

Improving access to early child education (ECE)

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: ECE consists of activities that aim to improve children’s capacity to develop and learn prior to starting elementary school. ECE takes a holistic approach to the development of the child by establishing a solid foundation for lifelong learning and well-being. Evidence shows that children who participated in ECE later tend to perform better academically. ECE generally includes basic nutrition, health care, activities designed to stimulate children’s mental, verbal, physical and psychosocial skills, and parenting skills training. Policies need to invest extensively in infrastructure for child care centres and train teachers to specialise in early education, especially in the most socially disadvantaged schools.

Do they work? Programmes must be inclusive and reach out to marginalised families (in rural areas and those with poor socio-economic backgrounds). Partnership and co-operation across line ministries (health, education, social affairs, etc.) are critical to ensure a multidisciplinary approach. A regulatory mechanism must control for the quality of child care centres and the professionals and caregivers.

Example: Early Childhood Stimulation Programme, Jamaica

An impact evaluation of an early childhood programme that took place in 1986-87 in low-income neighbourhoods in Kingston, Jamaica found that the programme allowed stunted (low height for age) children to catch up with their non-stunted counterparts, increasing income and reducing inequality later in life (Gertler et al., 2013). The programme selected 127 stunted children aged 9-24 months and randomly divided them into four groups that received different stimulations: psychosocial stimulation, nutrition, both interventions or neither intervention (the comparison group). Eighty-four non-stunted children from the same neighbourhoods served as an additional comparison group. The interventions included weekly home visits by trained community health workers, who encouraged and instructed mothers on how to interact with their children. Twenty years after the programme, the evaluation interviewed 105 of the original participants to assess the long-term impact of the programme on education and labour market outcomes. Stunted children who received psychosocial stimulation earned, on average, 25% more income than stunted children who did not receive stimulation. Children who received stimulation achieved the same average level of earnings as the non-stunted comparison group, which suggests that stimulation enabled stunted children to catch up with their non-stunted peers. In addition, children who received stimulation achieved more schooling than their non-beneficiary counterparts and were three times as likely to have had some college-level education.

Eligibility: Stunted children aged 9-24 months

Similar initiatives: ECE for children under age 6, Mexico; Maagan Early Childhood Service, Israel

Parental education programmes

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Parental behaviour and the family environment can be either strong protective factors in the lives of young people or strong risk factors. Evidence shows that investing in family-based parenting training that promotes positive, healthy, protective parent-child interactions can reduce risky behaviours among young people. There are different components to effective parenting, including communication, structure (setting rules), autonomy support and development support. Programmes generally consist of home visitation for parents of infants aged 0-3 (training, counselling, monitoring) or family therapy (providing skills and resources needed to raise teenagers). Parenting training can be a separate intervention or a component of a comprehensive prevention programme (which can include a health component).

Do they work? Staff must be highly trained (psychologists, counsellors, medical staff, etc.) in both cognitive and non-cognitive skills (communication, organisation, problem-solving, cognitive skills) to build positive relationships with families and deliver the curriculum. Parental training should start as early as possible, even before children are born. Community acceptance is essential for a programme to be effective. Therefore, establishing partnerships with existing community services (health services, child care, etc.) and programmes (immunisation programmes, ECE, life skills programmes, etc.) is important. Regular home visits will help build trust and constructive relationships between counsellors and parents, including fathers/men to the extent possible.

Example: Mother Child Education Programme (MOCEP), Turkey

MOCEP for young children began in Turkey in 1993. MOCEP is a home-based programme designed to support mothers of children ages 5 and 6 from low socio-economic backgrounds and without access to pre-school. The programme targets both mother and child. It aims to equip mothers with the knowledge and tools necessary to foster the development of their children and enhance their school readiness, while empowering the women within families by supporting them in their parenting role.

Eligibility: Children aged 5-6 and their mothers

Improving access to education

Conditional cash transfers (CCT) for education

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Providing financial incentives to attend school have proven very effective for reducing school drop-out rates and offsetting competing demands of work and child care outside of school. Several middle-income countries, mostly in Latin America, have increased school enrolment and health outcomes through CCT programmes that give cash grants to parents or young people themselves on the condition that they attend school on a regular basis. The cash is granted on a per-student basis and is conditional on the young person enrolling and attending school. Grants generally cover direct costs (such as school fees, supplies and transportation costs) and/or the opportunity costs imposed on families when they lose income as a result of sending their children to school. CCT programmes can also include a health component (see Health below). Other incentives include school vouchers, loans, grants, individual learning accounts, school supplies, etc.

Do they work? CCTs have been widely evaluated with the general conclusion that they do lead to greater school attendance and poverty reduction. A meta-analysis of 42 evaluations of CCTs’ impact on education outcomes shows that these programmes have greater effects on secondary enrolment than primary (Saavedra and Garcia, 2012). Programmes with more generous transfers have a larger effect on primary and secondary enrolment. Programmes with conditions of benefits based on achievement have greater impact on enrolment and attendance (although some evaluations conclude that unconditional cash transfers may generate improvements in health and education without the high costs of monitoring recipient compliance). CCT programmes should target the most vulnerable and poorest households. A weak or non-existent targeting strategy leads to leakages to the non-poor, driving down the impact. The amount of the transfer needs to be sufficient to provide a fair incentive for the target group to fulfil the condition. The amount should reflect the age of the beneficiaries to account for the increasing opportunity costs to the families. CCT programmes work best when complemented by other services, such as better teaching resources for schools and health centres.

Example: Bolsa Família, Brazil

Bolsa Família is a cash transfer programme which aims to reduce short-term and long-term poverty by conditioning the cash transfers on participation in education and health programmes. Bolsa Família targets poor families on condition that children are enrolled in school with minimum attendance of 85% for children aged 6-15 and 75% for children aged 16-17. In addition, parents must follow the prescribed course of vaccination for children aged 0-6. Pregnant women should participate in prenatal and postnatal check-ups, and women aged 14-44 who are breastfeeding should participate in health and nutrition classes offered by local health teams. The programme has four components: a basic benefit paid to all families considered to be in extreme poverty, a variable benefit paid according to the number of dependents, a variable benefit for adolescents and a benefit to combat extreme poverty in childhood (this benefit is paid to families with children aged 0-15, and its value depends on both family income and the total value of Bolsa Família benefits already being received).

Eligibility: Children and adolescents aged 0-17, poor families, women aged 14-44 who are breastfeeding

Removing indirect barriers to access primary and secondary education

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Schools must be accessible to all children. Barriers to access school include direct financial costs (e.g. school fees and supplies, transport costs, lunches, uniforms) and physical constraints (e.g. distance to school, ill health and work commitments at home or paid). Quality of education is sometimes so low that the parents do not see the value of schooling, making this perhaps one of the greatest barriers to school enrolment and attendance. Investing in the quality of education through better teaching methods and good incentives for qualified teachers, especially in remote areas, is fundamental to encourage universal enrolment. Other policy levers include increasing the school day and shortening the school week to reduce overhead and transport costs or adjusting schooling to agricultural seasonality. Increasing the period of compulsory education by lowering the age of entry into primary education or making upper secondary education compulsory can also increase enrolment.

Do they work? Sound data collection should help to identify the needs at the local level and to tailor education programmes to the local context. Additional funding will be needed to increase investment in the quality of education and school infrastructure.

Example: Todos a Aprende (Learning for All), Colombia

The Todos a Aprende programme began in 2012 and adopts a comprehensive approach towards school change. It offers support to low-performing schools on various fronts. In order to guarantee that all students can go to and stay in school, it offers transportation and meals to disadvantaged students. The programme also provides new pedagogical material for teachers and teacher training with assistance tutors to develop classroom management and pedagogical skills. Support in developing school improvement plans is also part of the programme.

Programmes to attend post-compulsory education

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: There are different ways to reduce the cost of post-compulsory education and improve access to tertiary education, including government-sponsored student loans with low or no interest rates, means-tested grants and scholarships and the provision of free or subsidised social services (food, transport, housing).

Do they work? Post-compulsory education programmes should provide access to the support system to students in the public and private sectors alike. Special consideration should be given to young people in remote areas (rural youth tend to have less access to these programmes). Targeted and rationalised scholarships and financial aids are needed so as not to benefit already privileged students.

Example: National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), South Africa

The NSFAS was established in 1996 to ensure that all academically able students without financial resources can attend higher education. The NSFAS provides income-contingent loans and bursaries to higher education students. While most of the scheme’s funding comes from the government, other sources include loan recovery, higher education institutions, the private sector and foreign donors. The loans are administered by the institutions themselves and are awarded to students based on level of need, i.e. based on annual gross family income, family size, distance from an institution, etc. Loans cover tuition costs and can also cover living costs and traveling expenses in cases of extreme need. Repayment of loans starts at 3-8% of the salary of an individual in permanent, full-time employment with a minimum annual salary at the threshold level of income (ZAR 26 300 in 2006). Apart from NSFAS loans, bursaries and loans are also available from private companies and commercial banks. State departments and provincial legislatures also provide tertiary funding in the form of bursaries. In most cases, these do not need to be repaid, but recipients may be required to work for the granting department or province for a certain period after graduation. Despite the large number of students who drop out of tertiary education, these schemes are considered a successful model of financial aid, as evidenced by students who receive such loans being more likely to graduate than those who do not.

Eligibility: Academically able students who qualify by a means test for financial aid

Similar initiatives: Fondo per lo studio (Study Fund) initiative, Italy

Youth inclusion programmes

Encouraging schools to take on disadvantaged children

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: A number of countries have experimented with policies to encourage school admission of low-performing or disadvantaged students. Additional funding and other investments are provided, based on the assumption that low-performing students bring additional costs and require more resources. Some countries give schools or local administrators autonomy to decide how to use the additional resources. Other programmes allocate specific goods and/or personnel to disadvantaged schools, such as specialised teachers or other professional and administrative staff; instructional materials (e.g. computers, laboratories, textbooks); or improvements to school infrastructure. Some countries offer different kinds of resources and support, depending on the level and the nature of socio-economic disadvantage. To equalise access to secondary or post-compulsory education, some governments also introduce affirmative action laws, which imposes quotas on educational institutions for the recruitment of students from poor backgrounds.

Do they work? Bigger schools with more capacities seem more attuned to these programmes and better able to identify their needs and design improvement plans. They are thus more likely to benefit from such policies compared to smaller and more marginalised schools, which are actually more in need of additional educational supports. Sound monitoring processes are needed to avoid diversion of resources, along with data collection on the child and youth population and on schools across the territory to better target children in need. To avoid the problem of only targeting children and young people coming from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, other factors to determine disadvantage (cultural, for instance). Small and rural schools in particular should be included in these programmes and data collection, as there is often a lack of data about these schools.

Example: Ley de Subvención Preferencia (Preferential Subsidy Programme), Chile

The Ley de Subvención Preferencia allocates extra funding for each disadvantaged student enrolled in a school in return for a commitment to raise the student’s test scores. While schools can decide how to spend this extra money, they must adhere to certain regulations and accountability requirements. They must, for example, design and implement a student improvement plan, which is evaluated within five years. The programme is being progressively implemented; however, it is still difficult to assess its effectiveness or isolate its impact on variation in school performance.

Eligibility: Disadvantaged school-aged children

Reducing school drop-out by targeting students most at risk

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: To address the problem of school drop-out, many countries have established mechanisms to identify individuals at risk for dropping out and provide them with individual learning support. Tailored follow-up and support programmes for struggling students and those at risk for dropping out are vital to reduce grade repetition and drop-out rates. Tutoring, extra teaching hours and support programmes for the transition between different levels of education have proven effective to improve school completion and student performance (Ruthbah, 2014; Savates, 2010). Information systems can be developed to follow students as they are promoted and transition to another level, transfer to another school, drop out or graduate. In some countries, teachers are trained to diagnose students with learning difficulties and to individualise their instruction based on the learning needs of their students to support their continued progress in schooling.

Do they work? Preventing drop-out requires staff adequately trained to identify, support and monitor students at risk and sufficient resources to allow teachers to customise teaching methods (classroom capacity, time management, adequate teaching material, etc.). Good internet coverage in the country is necessary to computerize the tracking system.

Example: “Campaign to reduce dropouts” programme, the Netherlands

The “Campaign to reduce dropouts” includes various measures to prevent pupils from leaving school early in the Netherlands. Since the qualification obligation that was introduced in 2007, young people must remain in education until the age of 18 (previously 16) until they have achieved at least upper secondary, pre-university or level-2 secondary vocational diploma. The Personal Identification Number (PGN) issued to every child over age 3.5 is an important source of information for research and monitoring in terms of education. Commonly referred to as the education number, it is used at once for tax and social insurance. Schools share the PGN and other data on pupils as the child progresses through education. In addition, all secondary schools pupils are allocated an education number and registered in the Basic Records Database for Education (BRON): a young person who is no longer registered in BRON is classified as an early school leaver. Statistics on early school leaving rates are available at national, regional, municipal and school level, and can be linked to socioeconomic data by region, town/city, and neighbourhood. Furthermore, since 2009, all schools must register school absenteeism via the Digital Absence Portal. Along with these monitoring measures, an action plan for career orientation and guidance has been drawn up to guide young people into the appropriate programme or occupation through information, mentoring, coaching and personal guidance. Finally, the provision of socio-educational services has become a basic facility in all schools to identify personal and social problems among pupils at an early stage, strongly connected to early school leaving. Since 2002, the programme has led to a decrease from 71,000 early school leavers in 2001-2002 to 27,950 in 2012-2013. Joint action by professionals in each region – schools, municipalities, youth care workers, business and industry – has also been essential in tackling the problem of early school leaving.

Eligibility: Every child over age 3.5

Promoting access to schools for girls

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Diverse policies can be implemented to ensure girls’ full and equal access to and achievement in education of good quality. Building separate bathrooms for girls or adjusting school times to accommodate their household responsibilities have proven very effective. Some governments also offer incentives (cash or in-kind) to incite families to send their girls to school. Providing scholarships can also be efficient in encouraging girls to attend secondary or higher education. Training teachers on gender-related issues and removing gender stereotypes from teaching materials are also essential to overcome female discrimination at school.

Do they work? To overcome unequal access to education, governments should provide adequate resources for the implementation of activities, address potential resistance from local populations and adapt programmes to local contexts – that is, make programmes sensitive to the values and social norms of the society. Overcoming discriminatory social norms through involvement of the local community is key to success.

Example: Promotion of Girls’ Education Project (PROGE), Malawi

PROGE aims to improve retention and transition to the upper secondary level for marginalised girls by increasing their access to education and engaging communities in Malawi. PROGE uses a three-pronged approach in support of girls’ education, aimed at students, teachers and other community members. PROGE seeks to empower girls by increasing participation in life skills education, providing incentives for academic competition, and sensitising, motivating and mobilising community structures (teachers, village heads, school management committees/parent-teacher associations, mothers’ groups, initiation counsellors) to eliminate gender-based discrimination at school. To these ends, the project uses a combination of strategies, such as social and community mobilisation, scholarships, and mentoring and advocacy.

Eligibility: Marginalised girls in upper secondary education

Similar initiative: Female Secondary School Assistance, Bangladesh

School-to-work transition

Vocational education and training

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Developing work-based learning and involving employers in education systems across different levels and types of education is a crucial way to strengthen the links between the education system and the labour market. Work-based learning can be integrated into vocational education and training (VET) and university programmes. Co-operation with the private sector is essential, since it can offer guidance on current and future labour market needs and provide training directly in the workplace. VET programmes at both upper secondary and post-secondary levels offer opportunities for young people to develop skills needed in the labour market and opportunities for employers to engage in the education system. Governments should ensure the quality of these programmes and ensure that they develop cognitive, social and emotional skills in addition to technical skills. Apprenticeship combines long-term on-the-job training and work experience with institution-based training and is a valuable way to learn and to get a foothold in the labour market. Internships also provide young people with practical and relevant work experience and should be promoted (for instance, by making internships compulsory to validate some university qualifications). Some countries have also established different mechanisms to encourage the participation of employers and students in work-based training, including tax breaks, direct subsidies, vouchers, student grants and levies, etc.

Do they work? These programmes rely on partnerships with the private sector to identify the skills that are needed in the labour market. Programmes should address a general lack of adequate employer involvement and insufficient connection between the training and the demands of the labour market. In most developing countries where the majority of youth work in the informal sector, efforts should be made to identify master craftsmen and small businesses and to validate skills gained through them. Programmes often lack co-ordination among the different public and private agencies responsible for delivering VET. Work-based learning provides young people with occupation-specific skills, which may limit their future mobility and adaptability. Therefore, vocational training should combine practical, occupation-specific skills and broader transferable skills. VET interventions should be regularly monitored and evaluated for their impact.

Example: Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Ghana

In Ghana, the Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET) was established in 2006 to co-ordinate and oversee all aspects of TVET in the country. Upon completing lower secondary school, young people can choose to continue their studies at the upper secondary level by attending senior high school, secondary technical school or a technical institute. Informal training is also provided, mostly through apprenticeships with master craftsmen, while non-formal training is provided mainly by community organisations and NGOs. Ghana has pursued efforts to establish a TVET national qualification framework with the objective of improving the career progression of TVET graduates. COTVET is also responsible for implementing the National Apprenticeship Programme (NAP), a one-year training programme which pairs young people who have limited education with master trainers operating small businesses. The programme is mostly targeted at young people who are unable to continue their education beyond lower secondary. As with the traditional apprenticeship model, COTVET has committed to paying master trainers and to providing a toolkit to each participating apprentice. NAP incorporates an innovative performance-pay scheme for training providers that ties compensation to the skill level of apprentices and their outcomes. NAP will offer students the opportunity to carry out apprenticeships in the informal sector. The programme is ongoing, and evaluation results are forthcoming.

Eligibility: Young people with low educational attainment

Example: Technical and Vocational Skills Training for Orphans, Vulnerable and Affected youth (TVST-OVAY)

In 2009, the Government of Malawi launched a vocational training program to increase employability and self-employment prospects of vulnerable youth. The Technical Education and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TEVETA) implemented the TVST-OVAY in 18 districts. The programme focused on apprenticeship training and TEVETA identified and trained a pool of master artisans in different trades (e.g. auto, clothing, construction, metalwork). In parallel, the districts and traditional authorities identified 1 900 OVAYS to receive the training. Each master artisan trained between 1 and 8 youth at their workshops for approximately three months. An impact evaluation showed that TVST-OVAY proved successful in developing both hard and soft skills of the trainees, such as their ability to calculate profits and their knowledge on how to start a business. In particular, trainees benefited from improved subjective well-being, such as self-esteem and happiness. However, the positive effect on skill development did not translate into significant gains in total earning or spending. The time, and sometimes personal savings, spent on training decreased the trainees’ opportunity for paid work and self-employment. A longer tracking period would be needed to make a fair evaluation.

Similar initiatives: Working agreements between employers and educational institutions, the Netherlands

Providing career guidance at school

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: High-quality and lifelong career guidance can help youth hone their efforts and raise their employability, and youth should be able to access these services at any point in their development. The high level of non-completion of some TVET and tertiary programmes reflects failures in the guidance process from compulsory to higher education (OECD, 2010). Governments should improve career guidance and counselling by ensuring that these services are provided at all education levels and institutions. Career guidance should provide young individuals and families with a full picture of the career pathways in the education system and of the market returns of these various paths, including those for vocational education. In schools, good-quality guidance can increase student engagement and success and support the transition from school to further education or work, as well as the acquisition of career management skills. Counselling should be based on an assessment of the individual’s skills and the labour market demands. Consistency and continuity in guidance services requires strong co-operation among institutions. It is also crucial to involve employers, for instance through career fairs and employer workshops. Some countries have developed indicators of labour market outcomes of institution and programme alumni towards improving the relevance of career guidance services.

Do they work? There is a need for the progressive professionalisation of career guidance (for professional counsellors, but also social workers, psychologists, etc.), alongside appropriate training for career guidance teachers in schools in the dual role of teacher and counsellor. Governments should conduct national information campaign to raise awareness about different opportunities and make information available to parents, families and communities. The private sector should be involved in the design of career guidance at school, including partnerships with various stakeholders (businesses, NGOs, chambers of commerce, youth offices, etc.). In-school and out-of-school career guidance should be provided to reach more young people.

Example: Career Education Promotion, Japan

In Japan, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) work together to promote career education. MEXT promoted the establishment of Regional Career Education Support Councils that support career education within schools by organising visiting lectures by companies and making arrangements with those providing workplace experience and internships for the students. MEXT also implements a project to assign internship coordinators to senior high schools, and coordinates the “Assist Caravan to Promote Career Education” Programme for teachers of senior high schools in order to improve their understanding of career education. MEXT distributes brochures, videos and materials for career education training at elementary, junior high and senior high school. For its part, MHLW conducts the “Career Search Program” by dispatching instructors (people who work at companies) to high schools in order to help students better understand the realities of various occupations in the labour market. It also conducts the “Experts on Career Education Development” Programme, which offers short courses to train career education personnel. Finally, METI is sponsoring the “Career Education Award,” which honours companies and organisations that perform visionary activities in support of education.

Eligibility: High school students

Similar initiative: Career Guidance at school, Botswana; Key Information Sets (KIS), United Kingdom

Second chance at education

Second chance programmes for school-age children

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Second chance education programmes have the potential to bring school-age children back to school, as well as to equip youth with the basic literacy and numeracy skills required for employment. Second chance interventions aim to strengthen the employment opportunities for unemployed, low-educated youth and to compensate for an absence of basic education and training, including personal and social skills. They enable individuals to complete general primary or secondary education, either by substituting for formal education or by allowing them to return to the formal education system. The main types of second chance programmes are i) accelerated learning programmes; ii) non-formal education programmes; and iii) education equivalency programmes. Accelerated learning programmes give children and youth an opportunity to complete the curriculum faster than in traditional education and help youth to re-enter the formal primary or secondary school system. Non-formal education programmes provide youth with instruction equivalent to formal education and focus on basic skills, such as literacy, oral expression, numeracy and problem-solving skills. They can be delivered in formal school facilities, learning centres, community schools, etc. Equivalency programmes provide young people with corresponding degrees, signalling that the recipient has demonstrated the skills corresponding to the level for which the degree was offered.

Do they work? Programmes could provide an income or restructure the duration and sequence of services to mitigate earnings losses for participants. Partnerships with various stakeholders (NGOs, communities, private sector, schools, etc.) help to ensure that graduates will be able to pursue their education or find a job. Strong links with the job market through greater employer involvement is key to the success of these programmes at the higher education levels and increases the probability that employers will hire participants after completion. Graduates of equivalency programmes should be accredited with similar qualifications to graduates of formal education programmes, sending a signal about the quality of the programme; that is, the programme should be perceived to be of equivalent quality and qualification by participants, teachers, the community and employers. Instructors should be trained in innovative teaching methods adapted to the needs of the target group while including formal teaching methods, allowing participants to re-enter formal education successfully. Programme’s effectiveness can be enhanced by collecting data on the needs of the target groups and the factors behind dropping out of the school system. Systematic evidence on the effectiveness of second chance programmes is limited. Much more data and evaluations are needed to understand how these programmes can cost effectively build skills and increase youth productivity.

Example: Jóvenes en Red (Youth Network Program), Uruguay

Since 2015, the National Youth Institute (Instituto Nacional de la Juventud) has implemented the Youth Network Programme (Jóvenes en Red), which aims at supporting young people living under conditions of social vulnerability and exclusion in Uruguay. The programme promotes the professional and social integration of vulnerable teenagers and youths aged 14-24 who are disconnected from the educational system and the labour market. The 18 months programme targets youths who have not completed basic education and are not studying, as well as young people who are unemployed, informal workers, unpaid family workers or living with an income below the poverty line. Interdisciplinary technical teams are deployed in the targeted regions (Montevideo, Canelones, San José, Artigas, Cerro Largo, Tacuarembó, Rivera, Salto and Paysandú) to develop individualised social and educational projects, which aim at providing the participants with the necessary skills to enter the labour market or return to school. They organise cultural, sport and artistic group activities, conduct life skills and literacy courses, and provide pedagogical support, job placement services and career guidance to the participants. Participants are also sensitized on workers rights, discriminations in the labour market, corporate culture, job search etc. Specialised teams take in charge youths with problems of substance abuses, mental health or violence. The technical teams work in close cooperation with the families, the communities and the local institutions (local businesses, educational centres, youth organisations etc.) The methodology applied is based on the work of proximity, from a territorial, local and decentralized approach. Since its inception, more than 5500 young people have participated in the programme. According to the first results, more than 70% of the young participants returned to school or find a job.

Similar initiative: Initiative pour le Développement des Jeunes (Out-of-School Youth Livelihood Initiative) (IDEJEN), Haiti

Qualification frameworks and certification schemes

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Transitioning between education levels and the labour market can be facilitated by well-functioning qualification frameworks. Many countries have implemented national qualification frameworks to promote lifelong learning, help employers better understand qualifications and make explicit how qualifications relate to each other. Qualification frameworks increase transparency across education systems and make the value of different qualifications more clear to students, employers and other stakeholders. In addition, countries are increasingly implementing innovative learning recognition approaches within their national qualification frameworks. Recognition of prior learning programmes involves a process of certifying pre-existing skills and knowledge to make skills visible to other actors, such as employers and education and training institutions. Recognition of prior learning can also reduce the time needed to obtain a certain qualification or diploma and thus the cost of foregone earnings.

Do they work? Qualification frameworks require a high level of collaboration and co-ordination between institutions and employers. They should not be set up as screening and sorting systems, which can have a long-term negative impact on some young individuals. They should maintain high quality standards while avoiding too great a focus on high-stakes examinations, which might favour the wealthy and create incentives for cheating.

Example: National Qualification Framework, South Africa

South Africa implemented a national qualification framework in 1998. It was designed as an integrated system with a transformational agenda to promote lifelong learning for all South Africans in a non-racial and non-sexist democracy. The framework intends to create a single integrated national framework for learning achievements; facilitate access to mobility and progression within education, training and career paths; enhance the quality of education and training; and accelerate the redress of past unfair discrimination. The government conducted recent reforms in the framework to simplify it and limit the proliferation of different qualifications. The new qualification framework distinguishes ten levels of learning achievement and identifies three sub-frameworks (General and Further Education and Training Qualifications; Higher Education Qualifications; and Trades and Occupations Qualifications). These reforms aim to improve school to work transitions and to support more effective career guidance and recognition of prior learning. Another objective of the reform is to enhance co-ordination among the different institutions and stakeholders involved in the educational system. Policies have been developed and assessments completed on the recognition of prior learning, the registration of qualifications, the recognition of professional bodies, credit accumulation and transfer. A national career advice service project has been developed to help users navigate the education and training system, while a repository for information on learner achievements (National Learners’ Records Database) provides insights into the status of the system.

Eligibility: Children and young people, public agencies responsible for education and training, education and training staff

Quality of education

Evaluating and monitoring the school system

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: It is essential to evaluate and monitor education programmes to gain a better understanding of their scope and improve their impacts. Evaluation and assessment policies can contribute to raising the quality of institutions by providing detailed information and identifying areas for improvement. The challenge is to design a comprehensive approach to education system evaluation which encompasses its different components in a coherent way through system evaluation, internal and external school evaluation, as well as student assessments. Internal school evaluation (self-evaluation) led by a school team and co-ordinated by a school leader can be complemented with an external evaluation team, which points out areas of improvement for the school. Some countries have established agencies dedicated to evaluation and assessment of the education system. Using student assessments (with national standards and standardised assessment at different grade levels) is also essential for both accountability and improvement of the school system. In addition, involving families and communities in school management and monitoring (through school councils, for instance) provides greater accountability of the school towards parents with regards to student and teacher performance.

Do they work? Difficulties persist in monitoring and assessing some dimensions of school performance (non-cognitive and social skills, emotional growth, etc.). Improvement efforts should focus on ensuring the capacity of education stakeholders to develop and use evaluations.

Example: School evaluation system, Mexico

In 2009, Mexico introduced a national system of upper secondary education, with a common curricular framework, monitoring system, academic guidance and other educational services (including scholarships to improve access). The National Institute for Educational Assessment and Evaluation was granted autonomy in 2013 to develop a strategic vision of assessment and evaluation in collaboration with the Secretariat of Public Education. As an independent body, it defines the process for teacher and student evaluation. In this context, the “Programa Sectorial de Educación 2013-2018» (Sectoral Education Programme 2015-2018) aims to ensure the quality of learning in basic education and to strengthen the quality and access to upper secondary education, higher education and training for work. The challenge is to ensure greater coverage, as well as inclusion and educational equity among all groups of the population to achieve a more inclusive society.

Eligibility: School system

Improving the quality of the teaching staff

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: The quality of an education system cannot be separated from the quality of its teachers and principals. In recruiting and training teachers, governments should make sure to i) set clear expectations for teachers; ii) introduce stringent and transparent recruitment procedures; iii) make the profession attractive to good candidates; iv) prepare teachers with useful and updated training (including pre-service training); v) match teacher knowledge and skills with student needs; vi) support teachers with good school leaders and useful teacher professional development; vii) monitor teacher performance and their students’ achievement; viii) promote collaborative work cultures and peer learning; and ix) offer incentives to motivate them. It is essential to design incentives for teachers (salary, working conditions, professional development opportunities, career path available, flexibility, etc.) to attract and retain talented individuals. Governments should also establish quality standards and sound monitoring mechanisms to evaluate teacher performance (probationary period, formative appraisal, performance management, teacher certification, etc.). Finally, ensuring equitable teacher deployment is key to improve quality of education in remote schools. Pre-service programmes to prepare teachers to work in under-resourced and isolated posts or posting teachers to schools in their home region may increase their success and ultimate likelihood to stay in that school. Incentive policies such as additional salaries, free housing and free transport should encourage experienced and strong teachers to take up undesirable rural posts (Mulkeen, 2007).

Do they work? Policy makers should be mindful of unintended negative consequences of incentive-based reforms: teachers neglecting certain students, cutting corners, artificially raising student scores, etc. An equitable teacher deployment system should distribute experienced and strong teachers across all schools (disadvantaged schools, rural areas, etc.) to ensure that all students have access to good teachers. To ensure an adequate number of highly effective teachers, data should be collected about the estimated demand, considering the school-age population, gross enrolment rate and average student-teacher ratio.

Example: Ensuring high-quality teaching, Singapore

Singapore has actively pursued policies to maintain a high-quality teaching force. Prospective teachers are carefully selected to be trained, and they receive a monthly stipend that is competitive with the monthly salary for new graduates in other fields in exchange for a commitment to teaching for at least three years. Initial training is based on close connections with schools and has a strong emphasis on pedagogical content. Salaries are regularly adjusted for new teachers to ensure that teaching is as attractive as other occupations for new graduates. Teachers are entitled to 100 hours of professional development per year in order to keep up with global changes and to enable constant improvement in their teaching practice. An annual performance appraisal against 16 competencies is conducted by a panel. Teachers who do outstanding work receive a bonus from the school’s bonus pool.

Eligibility: Teaching staff (teachers, school leaders)

Health

Youth-friendly health policies and services are believed to play an important role in strengthening a health system’s responsiveness to young people’s needs. It is now well-established that to support youth health outcomes effectively, particularly those of the most disadvantaged, health programmes should begin with maternal health and nutrition at early age. During adolescence and early adulthood, youth-friendly health services become crucial in addressing reproductive health and psychological needs through non-judgemental counselling and practical services, such as testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), access to contraceptives and HIV/AIDS prevention information. When advice on nutrition and mental health problems are included in the services, it can ensure a balanced life and improve the overall well-being of young people. Early pregnancies can have devastating consequences, especially on girls. A UNFPA report on adolescent pregnancies states that pregnancies before age 18 violates the rights of girls, with life-threatening consequences in terms of sexual and reproductive health (SRH), and causes high development costs for communities, particularly in perpetuating the cycle of poverty (Loaiza and Liang, 2013).

Access to health services

Providing access to youth-friendly health services

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Many young people tend not to use existing reproductive health services because of operational barriers (inconvenient hours, lack of transportation, high costs of services), a lack of information, an unwelcoming and judgemental attitude by service providers, fears about confidentiality, or cultural and gender barriers. Health services need to be specifically tailored to provide a comfortable and appropriate setting for young people and services that meet their specific needs. The basic components of a youth-friendly reproductive health service include specially trained providers, privacy, confidentiality and accessibility (geographic, financial and schedule). Youth-friendly services can be provided in health facilities (hospitals, clinics, health centres), through private providers, in social or community settings, in entertainment and recreational venues, at the workplace or in schools. A typical youth-friendly package of services might include information and counselling on sexuality, safe sex and reproductive health; provision of contraceptives, emergency contraception for women and advice on other protective methods; STI diagnosis and management; HIV counselling (and referral for testing and care); pregnancy testing and prenatal and postnatal care; counselling on sexual violence and abuse (and referral for any needed services); and post-abortion care, counselling and contraception.

Do they work? Youth-friendly health care services need to be integrated, allowing youth to obtain different services in a single location (“one-stop-shop”). Service providers should be specially trained to work with young people, qualified to listen to them, treat them with respect, allow sufficient time for interaction and honour their privacy and confidentiality. There is a notable lack of sufficient attention and services for important causes of adolescent mortality and morbidity: mental health disorders, nutrition issues, substance use, intentional and unintentional injuries and chronic illness, for example. Public education campaigns are needed to increase the use and support for youth-friendly services among young people, families and communities. Information can be provided to parents and other adults through the education sector and the media to change attitudes and norms towards sexual and reproductive health (SRH) issues. To reach as many youth as possible, youth-friendly services within public institutions and NGOs should be institutionalised. Existing legal, regulatory and socio-cultural constraints must be taken into account in developing programmes around a sensitive topic and offering the most relevant services. Involving young people in programme design and incorporating their feedback helps to ensure the relevance of these programmes.

Example: Youth-friendly health services (YFHS), Moldova

YFHS began in 2002 with three pilot centres. They were progressively integrated into the state health care system as part of primary health care centres. Today, 38 primary health care centres provide YFHS and reach approximately 70 000 young people annually. They are supervised by the Ministry of Health and co-ordinated by the NGO Neovita (Kempers, 2014). Most are financed by the national health insurance; the rest is financed by external donors. YFHC provide integrated services to adolescents, including SRH services, general health services, psychological counselling, information, education and communication activities, referrals and outreach work. Programmes are conducted by health professionals but also include some elements of peer-to-peer learning. The clinics guarantee privacy and confidentiality and provide non-judgemental care in a comforting environment.

Eligibility: All young people aged 10-24, young couples with and without children, vulnerable adolescents aged 10-19, and their families and communities

Similar initiatives: Profamilia, Colombia; Youth for Youth centres, Burkina Faso; Youth-friendly centres, South Africa

Free health services for youth

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Out-of-pocket payments have a deterrent effect on access to services for any population group and may have a disproportionate effect on adolescents due to their limited access to money and their dependence on family resources. It is therefore essential to design and implement adolescent financial protection measures (e.g. waivers, vouchers, exemptions from or reduced co-payments) so that health services are free at the point of use or otherwise affordable for adolescents. For instance, the provision of vouchers to young people for health services offers opportunities to reach vulnerable groups by reducing the cost barrier of paying out of pocket for health services.

Do they work? Institutions should strive to provide different services within one medical consultation (including counselling, provision of contraception, referrals) and develop youth-friendly information campaigns to build awareness and encourage youth to use the services. It is also important to include private sector providers in the programme, since they may be an appropriate and acceptable delivery channel for a broad range of youth-friendly health services once financial barriers are removed. Digital vouchers can be an effective way to implement a youth health care cost-reduction programme, but extending the outreach to young people without mobile devices is essential (e.g. including a paper voucher component). The primary concern should be ensuring that basic health services are accessible and affordable to all youth.

Example: Link Up voucher programme, Uganda

Marie Stopes International Uganda (MSIU) established a voucher scheme for young people in 11 districts in Uganda to improve access to high-quality health and reproductive health services that are sensitive to young people’s needs. The voucher package consisted of family planning, STI management, HIV counselling and testing, and the provision of male and female condoms. Each voucher granted two visits for HIV testing, three visits for family planning and three visits for STI management. All services were provided free of charge. The programme was communicated with youth-tailored messaging under the campaign slogan “Stay on top of your game, be safe”. MSIU trained 80 service providers (clinical officers and nurses) from 37 BlueStar (NGO) facilities and three Marie Stopes Uganda clinics on the competencies and attitudes needed to work with vulnerable groups of young people. A total of 70 community-based distributors have been trained on SRH and HIV and are now able to reach out to peers, distribute vouchers and follow up with clients. A total of 35 000 vouchers were distributed during the year-long project (2014-15). Of those receiving services, 27 002 were aged 10-24.

Eligibility: Young people, with a focus on vulnerable groups (men who have sex with men, sex workers, people who use drugs, transgender, people, and young women and men living with HIV)

Similar initiatives: Youth voucher programme, Madagascar; Health insurance for students, Viet Nam

Early marriage and early pregnancy care

Increasing the minimum age for marriage

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Laws should ensure that the minimum age for marriage corresponds with an objective standard of physical, psychological and emotional maturity. Child marriage threatens girls’ lives and health, and it limits their future prospects. Among other things, girls who marry early are at greater risk for domestic violence, more likely to soon bear additional and greater numbers of children, less able to negotiate safe sex, face a greater risk for contracting HIV/AIDS and STIs and are less likely to obtain an education. Girls who get married early often become pregnant while still adolescents, increasing the risk for complications in pregnancy or childbirth. In addition, the risks of maternal and infant mortality are greater when girls give birth as adolescents. Laws that strictly established 18 as the minimum age of marriage are associated with dramatic reductions in adolescent fertility and can have a significant impact on adolescent girls’ health (Kim, 2013).

Do they work? Cultural values, local context, etc. complicate the determination of an “optimal age” for marriage. Minimum-age-of-marriage laws that allow exceptions (such as marriage with parental consent) have a low impact on early pregnancy (Kim, 2013). Of chief importance is addressing resistance to marriage age legislation among the population; it is important both to raise awareness and to adapt programmes to local contexts. Enforcement measures should be considered carefully, especially in remote and rural areas with strongly embedded traditions.

Example: Financial incentive schemes to postpone marriage, India

The governments of Rajasthan, Karnataka and Haryana in India have established an incentive programme for low-income families to increase a girl’s age at marriage indirectly. In Haryana, a small sum of money (Rs 2 500) is put away for five year by the Government into a savings account for a girl at her birth. At age 18, if she is still unmarried, she is eligible to collect the accumulated sum (Rs 96 000). This economic incentive to postpone girls’ marriage is complemented by support for girls’ education. The intention is to encourage parents to postpone marriage until daughters reach and can use the grant for their dowry (Sekher, 2010).

Eligibility: Girls aged 0-18

Preventing adolescent pregnancy

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Preventing adolescent pregnancy and unsafe abortion requires comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and SRH care, such as promoting the use of contraception, making contraceptive methods accessible (including emergency contraception) and retaining girls in schools. The Convention on Rights of the Child (CRC) and the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) both make commitments to eliminate harmful traditional practices such as child marriage and child pregnancy. The 1994 Programme of Action issued by ICPD urges governments to enforce “…laws to ensure that marriage is entered into only with the free and full consent of the intended spouses…(and) laws concerning the minimum legal age of consent and the minimum age at marriage….”. It calls for action “to encourage children, adolescents and youth, particularly young women, to continue their education in order to equip them for a better life, to increase their human potential, to help prevent early marriages and high-risk child-bearing and to reduce the associated mortality and morbidity”.

Do they work? It is important to adopt a comprehensive approach to early pregnancy prevention, which includes life skills and SRH education at school, social marketing, youth-friendly health services and centres and, importantly, involving young men in the programmes. Existing legal, regulatory (for instance, regarding abortion) and strong socio-cultural norms must also be taken into account in developing programmes around a sensitive topic.

Example: The Kishori Abhijan programme, Bangladesh

In 2001, UNICEF initiated a pilot project to improve the lives of adolescent girls in Bangladesh by transforming the social environment in which they live. The Kishori Abhijan project aims to inform girls, boys and their parents about gender roles, discrimination, health, hygiene, nutrition and their legal rights. It also offers adolescent girls the opportunity to acquire life, livelihood and leadership skills. The primary topics concentrate on child marriage, dowry, child rights, reproductive health, HIV and STI prevention, family planning, birth and marriage registration and domestic violence awareness. According to a 2008 UNICEF evaluation of child protection interventions, Kishori Abhijan was the third most highly rated intervention for evidence quality, receiving excellent scores on all evaluative measures.

Eligibility: Married and single boys and girls aged 13-22

Sexual and reproductive healthcare

Providing reproductive health services to young mothers

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Evidence shows that adolescents are disadvantaged in their use of skilled prenatal, childbirth and postnatal care, as well as in their use of abortion and post-abortion care. Childbirth at an early age is associated with greater health risks for the mother. WHO estimates (2014) that about 16 million girls aged 15-19 and some 1 million girls under 15 give birth every year, mostly in low- and middle-income countries.

Complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the second cause of death for 15-19 year-old girls globally. Effective interventions during pregnancy and breastfeeding therefore have strong potential to affect positively the health of both mother and child throughout their lives. Prenatal care services should focus on diagnosing and treating anaemia in pregnant adolescents, improving their nutritional status, preventing and treating STIs, treating for malaria, detecting gender-based violence, preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV and reducing smoking and drug abuse. During the post-partum period, health services should pay special attention to providing support for breastfeeding, delaying or preventing repeat pregnancy and visiting young mothers at home.

Do they work? More evidence about the costs, cost-effectiveness or cost-benefit of adolescent pregnancy care programmes is needed, but programmes (see example below) that have been evaluated show positive effects on girls’ autonomy, reproductive health knowledge and practice, and couple relations. Girls who benefited from such programmes are also more likely to have a greater say in household decisions (Santhya, 2007). Again, it is important to include young men/husbands in the programmes to ensure their effectiveness. It is important also that health workers are competent in meeting the special information and psychosocial needs of adolescent mothers. Youth-friendly reproductive health services should be responsive to young mothers’ needs without prejudice.

Example: First-Time Parents Project, India

The First-Time Parents Project by Population Council was conducted in two settings in rural India: Vadodara Block in Gujarat and Diamond Harbour Block in West Bengal. The project aimed to increase young women’s social support networks and use of reproductive health care services, including pregnancy care, in rural areas. It was based on the hypothesis that the periods following marriage and surrounding the first birth offer a unique opportunity to improve the prospects of young mothers and foster more equitable relations with their counterparts. The project consisted of three components: providing SRH education and information; modifying existing pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum services; and establishing groups of married girls to reduce their social isolation and increase their agency. The project provided young women and their husbands with information through home visits, educational materials, counselling in clinics, group discussions and community activities. The project staff also worked with government and private sector health service providers to educate them about the special needs of young and first-time parents. Findings in both sites showed that the intervention had a significant, positive net effect on most indicators reflecting married young women’s autonomy, social support networks, partner communication and knowledge of SRH (Santhya, 2007).

Eligibility: Young women who were newly married, pregnant or postpartum for the first time and their husbands, senior family members and health care providers

Establishing HIV/STIs treatment programmes

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: HIV infections can be prevented and treated. However, most HIV-infected youth do not receive adequate health care even when it is available. Barriers to health care for HIV-infected youth include lack of financial resources and/or insurance, mistrust of health care professionals, difficulty negotiating complex health care systems, a shortage of providers with expertise in both HIV and adolescent medicine, and concerns about confidentiality. Fear, denial and cultural perspectives may also contribute to a young person’s reluctance to go for care. Accessible, non-discriminatory and confidential HIV treatment, care and support services are essential, while at the same time targeting prevention programmes to reach vulnerable groups of young people. Voluntary and counselled HIV testing needs to be intensified.

Do they work? Governments should support NGOs and civil society organisations to reach populations at risk. Civil society organisations and people living with HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable groups should be involved in developing and implementing HIV policies. Multidisciplinary case management and care optimises efficiency for both programme provider and young clients. Programmes should combine primary care with HIV-specific care, mental health services, sexual health care and secondary prevention in “one-stop-shop” settings with providers who are familiar with youth needs. Trained and youth-competent care providers are a major factor in drawing youth into or deterring them from using the health care system. An integrated approach to youth HIV/AIDS takes into account other risks. Investment in comprehensive health care for drug users should also help to decrease the number of new HIV infections among drug users (with access to sterile needles, addiction-treatment, etc.).

Example: Leveraging the Expansion of HIV/AIDS, Gender, and Reproductive Health Projects, Ethiopia

NGO Pathfinder’s projects aim to prevent the spread of the virus and to care for those who are infected or affected. With funding from the Swedish International Development Agency, projects aim to contain the spread of STIs and HIV/AIDS, reduce stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), improve the quality of life of PLWHA and their families, and increases access to quality reproductive health services through diversified service delivery approaches and geographical expansion of programmes. Interventions include peer education to in- and out-of-school youth, skills training and income generation activities, and the establishment and strengthening of youth centres and youth-friendly reproductive health services. The programme also contributes to building the local NGOs and youth-serving organisations’ capacity to strengthen community-based HIV/AIDS activities and enable them to manage integrated, quality HIV/AIDS, family planning, and family health programmes and services toward sustainable strategies and accountability.

Eligibility: PLWHA, with a focus on young people

Healthy lifestyle and behavioural change

Promoting road safety

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Road traffic crashes are one of the leading causes of death among young people. Sustained efforts to implement appropriate interventions targeted specifically at young people can greatly reduce deaths and injuries among this population group. The major risk factors can be addressed through legislation and enforcement and by educating young people about road traffic risks. Providing road safety education (RSE) at school and in community settings, promoting knowledge and understanding of traffic rules, improving driving skills through training and experience, and changing attitudes towards safe and socially responsible behaviour are key pillars of traffic safety. Apart from RSE, different measures have significantly reduced deaths and injuries, including lowering speed limits, cracking down on drinking and driving, promoting and enforcing the use of seat belts and motorcycle helmets, as well as improving road infrastructure. Implementing a gradual driver licensing for novice drivers and introducing zero-tolerance policy for driving under the influence of alcohol or other psychoactive substances are efficient ways to reduce traffic deaths related to alcohol use among young road users.

Do they work? Local government agencies, NGOs, local community organisations, representatives of international organisations, private companies and other stakeholders should all be involved in designing and implementing the strategy to reduce occurrences. Trained peer educators have been found to be the most appropriate providers of road safety programmes in schools (e.g. Responsible Young Driver initiative, role models). Limiting information to road safety does not address the many reasons young people engage in risky behaviours; programmes need to recognise the underlying motivations and expected outcomes among young people of the risky behaviour and address these risk factors (peer pressure, alcohol consumption, etc.). Furthermore, one-off educational programmes have little impact.

Example: Helmet Law, Cambodia

The helmet law passed in 2009 increased helmet use in Phnom Penh from 8% to over 50% within one month of the law being enforced. The law is the result of coordinated efforts between the government and civil society, including Handicap International Belgium (HIB), to develop and implement a National Helmet Action Plan. The plan follows a systems approach with multiple elements focusing on: public information and education; enforcement including training of police; development of tougher helmet standards; subsidised helmets programme for police and school children. This example shows that a combination of legislation and increased public education and enforcement can have a significant positive affect on changing behaviour.

Eligibility: Whole population, secondary school students

Similar initiatives: Road safety legislation, Kazakhstan

Life skills programmes to prevent unhealthy and risky behaviours

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: According to the World Health Organization definition, life skills are behaviours that enable individuals to adapt to and deal effectively with the demands and challenges of life. They are a group of cognitive, social, interpersonal and emotional coping skills, which include the ability to make decisions, solve problems, think critically and creatively, communicate, be assertive, negotiate, cope with emotions and stress, build healthy relationships, feel empathy and be self-aware. Possessing life skills may be critical to a young person’s ability to practice healthy behaviours. Teaching methods should be youth-centred, gender-sensitive, interactive and participatory. The most common teaching methods include working in groups, brainstorming, role-playing, story-telling, debating, and participating in discussions and audio-visual activities. Life skills-based health education can be applied to almost any health-related issue or content area. UNICEF promotes the life skills approach to reduce health-related problems for youth around alcohol, tobacco and other drug use; nutrition; pregnancy prevention; and HIV/AIDS and other STIs prevention. For instance, critical thinking, self-awareness and decision-making skills are important for analysing and resisting peer and media influences to use tobacco or for countering social pressure to adopt unhealthy eating practices or drink alcohol. Interpersonal communication skills, negotiation skills and self-confidence are needed to negotiate alternatives to risky sexual behaviour.

Do they work? Life skills programming works best when introduced as early as possible before the onset of risk behaviours, ideally in early adolescence. Again, it is effective to include young people in designing and implementing the programme and its activities and to consult with parents and the wider community to gain support for the programme. Teachers must be adequately trained on using life skills approaches. There will be potential resistance from teachers who may regard the programme as non-academic and therefore not worth learning or teaching. Teaching materials must be appropriate to the age, gender, sexual experience and culture of the young people and their communities. Concepts should progress from simple to complex, with later lessons reinforcing and building on earlier learning. Curriculum should focus on a small number of specific behavioural goals and give a clear health content message by continually reinforcing a positive and health-promoting stance on these behaviours. Funding, learning resources and infrastructure for teacher training are often insufficient, and inadequate time is made available for classes. To implement these programmes, it is important to gain support from various stakeholders: use advocacy to influence leaders, mobilise communities from the earliest stages of programme development and secure the commitment of policy makers. Evidence shows that life skills education programmes that include SRH information have contributed to youth delaying sexual intercourse, increasing condom use and decreasing the number of sexual partners (UNICEF, 2002). Life skills can also help to prevent mental health problems, such as conduct disorders, anxiety, depression and eating disorders.

Example: Life Skills Project, Armenia

In 1998, the Ministry of Education and Science, in collaboration with UNICEF and the International Institute of Global Education at the University of Toronto, introduced Life Skills into the core curriculum of the Armenian education system. The project was piloted in the first and fifth grades in 16 schools in 1999/2000. In 2000/01, the project was expanded to 100 schools and to the second and sixth grades. A Canadian team trained a core team of curriculum developers and teacher trainers to write a curriculum tailored for Armenian students and train teachers in implementation. The life skills taught included decision making, problem solving, creative thinking, critical thinking, effective communication, interpersonal relationship skills, self-awareness, empathy and coping with stress and emotions. Evidence shows the positive impact of the programme (Ashton, 2001). Students were enthusiastic about the curriculum and wanted it expanded to more of their classes. Teachers and principals reported positive changes in the students participating in the curriculum, such as development of self-assertion, self-expression, self-esteem and self-awareness. The programme also tended to improve teacher-pupil relations and enhanced parent interest in the school.

Eligibility: First, second, fifth and sixth grade students

Similar initiatives: The Better Life Options Programme, India; National Life Skills Education Programme, Nepal; Life Skills Programme, South Africa; Integral Education, Colombia

Promoting health education and health care in schools

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Schools are strategic places for delivering risk prevention programmes as they can reach many young people at once. In addition to health education, schools are conducive environments for teaching young people about good hygiene habits and healthy eating and lifestyle. Governments should promote safe and clean school environments by providing clean water, nutrition and sanitation (bathrooms for girls and for boys), discouraging school violence and bullying, and forbidding tobacco and drug use. Schools can provide young people with easy and free access to health services, including SRH or psychological support. In addition, educational professionals can identify students at risk or who have vision, hearing, learning, substance abuse issues or HIV/AIDS and organise related screening campaigns. Screening services should ideally be accompanied by a referral system to address the problem. Schools can also encourage physical activity by implementing physical education programmes and provide spaces for active playing, such as schoolyards and sport halls. Schools should provide healthy meals and limit access to junk food and beverages on school premises.

Do they work? Bridging the gap between policy formulation and implementation requires the allocation of sufficient resources and co-ordination. Co-ordination among different government ministries (especially between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education) is essential. Lack of reference materials on thematic areas may hamper implementation of the policy. These include materials on water, sanitation and hygiene concerning bathroom and water facility construction standards; hygiene education and promotion; agriculture and nutrition; life skills; and disease control. Policy should recognise the importance of engaging the broad youth environment (communities and families) to strengthen the impact of programmes implemented at school.

Example: Therapeutic After-School programmes, Israel

Therapeutic After-School programmes are extra-curricular courses, which are offered after class in Israel. The programmes provide scholastic courses and support for homework preparation, social activities, as well as individual and group therapy to elementary school pupils. These programmes aim to strengthen social skills of children, providing them with emotional support and reinforcing parent-child relationships. A total of 216 children aged 6-11 benefited from the therapeutic after-school programmes in 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. According to the first results, there was a moderate decline in the number of problems faced by the children who participated in the programmes. There was a decline in the incidence of risky situations, such as low scholastic achievements, exposure to dangerous behaviours in the family, illegal or non-normative behaviours and physical abuse. However, there was no significant change in the number of children with more complex problems or with less complex problems. The choice of services in the localities indicated a preference for providing care through universal services (schools, preschools, mother and child healthcare centres), which allows providing assistance to families and children in a non-stigmatising way.

Similar initiatives: The Shokuiku initiative (promoting food education), Japan; National School Health Policy and Guidelines, Kenya

Providing comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education (CSE)

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: CSE enables young people to make informed decisions about their sexuality and health. The most effective sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education programmes are those that help to reduce misinformation and provide correct information, clarify values and reinforce positive attitudes, and strengthen decision-making and communication skills. Programmes should include life skills training (decision making, assertiveness, communication, negotiation, acceptance, tolerance, etc.) and impart information on relationships; values and attitudes towards sexuality, culture, society, gender and human rights; human development (physiology, puberty, body image, privacy and bodily integrity); and sexual behaviour and SRH (especially the prevention of pregnancy and STIs and HIV). CSE curricula that emphasise critical thinking about gender and power are far more effective at reducing rates of STIs and unintended early pregnancy than conventional “gender-blind” programmes. CSE can be implemented both in schools and through community-based training and outreach. At school, CSE may be mandatory or delivered through optional courses, although a large number of students will not receive its benefits where sexuality education is non-compulsory, extra-curricular or only partially compulsory. Governments should also implement strategies to reach out-of-schools youth and other groups of marginalised young people (including girls and young women), who are most in need of information and education but are sometimes not enrolled in any educational programmes. Youth networks, youth organisations, community organisations, clubs and trained peer educators may all be enlisted to expand the reach of SRH education to young people out of school.

Do they work? Ideally, knowledge and skills imparted by school-based prevention programmes are linked to the rest of the curriculum. Programmes should balance teaching of knowledge, skills and facts with life skills and peer pressure resistance skills. There is often a lack of teachers who possess the necessary knowledge and training to teach appropriate and correct information on SRH to young people. Teachers must be adequately trained and supported in examining their own values and biases in order to foster a non-judgmental and trusting environment in schools. Programmes that teach only abstinence are not effective. Indeed, CSE should be delivered together with efforts to expand access to a full range of youth-friendly SRH services (UNFPA, 2015). Still, sound pedagogical research, including theories and standards backed by evidence, is needed to inform the development of curricula. It is also important to consult and involve young people from the outset of educational initiatives – including engaging adolescent boys and young men in education on sexual and reproductive health, rights and gender equality – and to build support for programmes among parents, teachers and community leaders. Capacity-building in bodies responsible for educational curricula (government, teachers, youth networks and youth-led organisations) is essential to their sustainability.

Example: Committees for the Prevention of Pregnancies and STIs among Adolescents (COPEITSA), Honduras

COPEITSA is supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and aims to provide young people with CSE and information on gender equality and empowerment using a peer-to-peer approach. Representatives from local health centres visit classrooms to recruit young volunteers for the programme, and each peer educator receives training on SRH through the COPEITSA programme. The programme receives broad support among civil society organisations and government representatives. Since its launch in 2013, the programme has trained over 1 500 adolescents as peer educators, and they have in turn reached more young people by presenting information at fairs, movie theatres, concerts and on the Internet; by handing out flyers from parade floats; even by performing educational puppet shows.

Eligibility: Adolescents aged 12-18

Similar initiatives: Adolescence: Time of Choices, Chile; Teens on Smart Sex, Thailand; Planeando tu Vida, Mexico; CSE, Zambia

CCT programmes to promote children’s and young mothers’ health

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Health-related CCT subsidises the poor on condition of specific behaviours. Health and schooling conditions for children are often combined (see above the CCT programmes for education). They are usually targeted to preschool children and pregnant and lactating women and granted on condition that household members make regular health visits, including up-to-date vaccinations and pregnancy care (perinatal and nutrition). CCTs can be an effective means of increasing the use of health services and improving health and nutrition outcomes for children and pregnant women. Several evaluations also show that CCTs increase prenatal visits, skilled attendance at birth, delivery at a health facility, tetanus toxoid vaccination for mothers and reduced incidence of low birth weight (Glassman, Duran, and Koblinsky, 2013).

Do they work? Targeted CCT programmes lead to greater school attendance and poverty reduction (Fiszbein, 2009). CCT programmes require sound targeting mechanisms to reach the most disadvantaged children and families. Weak or non-existent targeting strategy leads to leakages to the non-poor, driving down programme impact. However, targeting and monitoring can increase the cost per beneficiary. Conditions and compliance monitoring should be simple and easily verifiable, although it is still unclear how important conditionality is to changing behaviour. Some evaluations find that unconditional cash transfers may generate improvements in health and education without the high costs of monitoring compliance (making them less costly to administer than CCTs). The quality and availability of relevant health services must be assured since conditionality can only be effective when quality health services are available to use. Supply-side interventions to deal with problems such as low service quality, staff shortage or medical supply bottlenecks are first prerequisites for a successful CCT. The amount of the transfer also needs to be sufficient to provide a fair incentive for the target group to fulfil the conditions. In terms of evaluation, there are gaps in knowledge and a need to improve evaluation and reporting of standardised outcomes across CCT studies. Cost data also need to be better reported, and programme interventions should be compared in terms of cost-effectiveness.

Example: Prospera (formerly Oportunidades), Mexico

Prospera helps poor families in rural and urban communities improve the education, health and nutrition of their children. Originally a rural programme, known as Oportunidades, it has slowly been expanded to poor urban areas. Currently 6.8 million families are beneficiaries of this program. Cash transfers to households are linked to regular school attendance and health clinic visits, and payments are given to the female head of family. The three chief components of programme are education, health and nutrition. Under the education component, grants are provided for primary to high school and increase as children progress to higher grades. Beginning at the secondary level, grants are slightly higher for girls than for boys. The health component provides basic health care for all members of the family through public health institutions, with a particular emphasis on preventive health care. The nutrition component includes a fixed monthly transfer of approximately MXN 155 (or USD 15.50) for improved food consumption, as well as nutritional supplements for children aged 4-24 months, malnourished children aged 2-4 and pregnant and lactating women. Various studies (González de la Rocha, 2008) demonstrate the positive impact of the programme on school enrolment rates and education levels, significant improvements in nutritional status and better preventive health. Data suggest that the programme has had a large impact on increasing child growth and in reducing child stunting. Several studies show positive effects on the number of prenatal procedures recommended by the Ministry of Health and provided during antenatal visits.

Eligibility: Poor families in urban and rural areas

Discouraging risky health behaviours through social marketing

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Social marketing campaigns aim to change negative behaviours into positive ones by influencing the knowledge and attitudes of young people. Social marketing and mass media techniques can reach a large number of young people, including at-risk youth who are typically not enrolled in school. Young people are particularly susceptible to media messages, which therefore have a role to play in providing young people with the necessary knowledge and skills to protect themselves and prevent them from engaging in risky health behaviours. Interventions that deliver positive social marketing messages through radio, television, print and other media have been shown to be effective in reducing sexually risky behaviour (through HIV prevention and positive reproductive health messages), reducing tobacco consumption and reducing violent behaviour, particularly against women (e.g. mass media can also be used to conduct anti-violence campaigns). Condom social marketing (CSM) programmes have been successful in increasing both condom use and knowledge of safe sex practices among their beneficiaries. CSM consists in the distribution of free condoms complemented with safe sex information campaigns in the mass media and strategic targeting to particularly vulnerable parts of the youth population. CSM can play a positive role in overcoming social and cultural resistance to the effective prevention of STDs and unplanned pregnancies.

Do they work? To create long-lasting behavioural change, social marketing and mass media campaigns need to be accompanied by community or group-based interventions, individual youth interventions and access to youth-friendly products and services (the same reasoning applies to anti-violence campaigns, which should be co-ordinated with other prevention efforts and social policies). Young people should be included in the design, production and dissemination of the messages. In addition, it is essential to incorporate a wide range of stakeholders, including mass media, NGOs, community-based organisations, industry, health and education practitioners, peer educators, and universities and research institutes to help with programme development and implementation. Ensuring adequate monitoring and evaluation is also crucial. Campaigns should take into account the ability of the target group to absorb the messages. Targeting young adolescents about risky behaviour may have more lasting impact since they receive information earlier in life. Media messages must be related to real issues in families, schools and young people’s lives and should be embedded in existing cultural norms and expectations. Social marketing strategies should be adapted to areas with little internet or social media access (e.g. distribute items, stickers, etc.).

Example: Con S de Sexo radio programme, Paraguay

Con S de Sexo is a radio programme hosted by adolescent peer educators and aimed at adolescents aged 15-19 in urban and peri-urban Asunción. It was developed and executed by Arte y Parte, an adolescent reproductive health communications initiative implemented to address the high risk for unwanted pregnancy and STIs, including HIV/AIDS, among adolescents. Con S de Sexo has two main goals: to increase knowledge of SRH among adolescents to promote responsible sexual behaviour, and to improve communication and negotiation skills related to SRH issues among adolescents. The programme is based on three main interventions: using peer educators, developing adolescent-specific media product and promoting increased media attention to adolescent SRH issues. Adolescents are involved at all stages of Con S de Sexo, from design to implementation. All peer educators go through 80 hours of training in SRH, communication and negotiation, journalism, drama and sexual abuse. Con S de Sexo became a mainstay of the reproductive health landscape, airing two live shows a week in Greater Asunción. Each episode of the radio show is interspersed with 10-second info spots containing facts, news and interesting items on sex and reproductive health. In addition to the radio programme, Arte y Parte develops several mass media products to disseminate SRH-related information to youth, including booklets, videos, school workshops, street theatre aimed at out-of-school youth, news flashes, articles and interviews, etc. Evaluations show that the radio programme reaches approximately 20% of the youth living in the three cities targeted; one evaluation suggests that the project increased knowledge of selected SRH issues among adolescents, as well as the proportion of adolescents who subscribe to safe sex practices, and most likely contributed to the significant increase in the proportion of adolescents reporting having used a condom in their first sexual encounter.

Eligibility: Young people aged 15-19

Similar initiatives: Horizon Jeunes, Cameroun; LoveLife, South Africa; Twende na Wakati, Tanzania

Reducing youth’s access to alcohol and tobacco

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Policies that limit young people’s access to alcohol and tobacco can have a strong positive impact on their health behaviour and outcomes. Various government measures can reduce the number of adolescents who start using these substances. First, increasing alcohol and tobacco taxes is a straightforward way to lower consumption of both products among young people, who typically have very little money to spend and are very sensitive to changes in price. Second, policy makers can intervene by enforcing sales restrictions, including controls on hours of operation, density and location of sales outlets. Prohibitions on using alcohol or tobacco at community and sporting events or in public areas (including schools) can also be introduced. In addition, governments can impose a minimum age for purchasing and consuming tobacco and alcohol, although difficult to monitor and enforce. Limiting the licensing to large stores and avoiding licensing small shops can be a partial solution to the problem of enforcement. Finally, governments can ban the marketing, promotion and sponsorship of such products.

Do they work? To have the maximum possible impact on youth alcohol and tobacco consumption, a joint tax increases and sales restrictions can be effective. Alcohol taxes must be kept as simple as possible to make them efficient and effective to administer. Sales restriction laws must be supported by strong enforcement and credible sanctions on consumers, sellers and retail establishments. A percentage of increased tax revenues can be used to train and increase the capacity of enforcement institutions. Alcohol and tobacco prevention strategies can be combined with school and community-based alcohol and tobacco use prevention education.

Example: California Tobacco Control Program, United States

In 1988, California voters approved a ballot initiative that increased state cigarette taxes by USD 0.25 per pack, with 20% of the new revenues (over USD 100 million per year) earmarked for health education against tobacco use. California launched its new Tobacco Control Programme in the spring of 1990. Despite increased levels of tobacco marketing and promotion, a major cigarette price cut in 1993, tobacco company interference with the programme and periodic cuts in funding, California’s comprehensive approach has reduced youth and adult smoking significantly. Adult smoking declined by 49% from 1988 to 2011. Smoking prevalence among high school students decreased by more than 50%, from 21.6% to 10.5%.

Target: Whole population

Similar initiative: Restrictions on the purchase of alcohol and tobacco products to minors under age 20, Japan

Civic participation and empowerment

Several countries around the world have developed policies and programmes to support active youth citizenship and encourage youth participation in political and social life. Fostering cultural and creative activities is getting increasing attention among policy makers as a means to respond to youth needs and aspirations and to boost job creation. Investments in violence prevention programmes and juvenile justice services are also gaining ground in an increasing number of countries. The rationale is that citizenship cannot be fully exercised in areas where crime rates are high and social capital is low. Therefore, policies related to safety and juvenile justice systems have been included in this section.

Civic and political participation

Voting

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Elections are one of the main ‘transmission belts’ for citizen political participation. Since those elected decide on policies to address the needs of their voters, a lack of young voter turnout may mean that their concerns have little or no representation. Governments can promote youth voting and make sure their voices are heard through the ballot box. The minimum voting age strongly determines youth engagement in the electoral process. Although voting age varies by country and the global verdict on the optimal minimum age for voting has not been reached, proponents of lowering voting age find that giving an opportunity to exercise their civic rights early in life creates further interest in civic, social and political engagement among young people. Voting rights should be accompanied with comprehensive and understandable information about upcoming elections through the media and online resources, easily accessible by youth. Governments may outsource such services to non-governmental actors but should make sure the data and information necessary to build such services are available. In addition, governments should support policies to increase access to voting for young people. Simplifying registration and voting system may increase young people’s electoral turnout.

Do they work? There is no consensus on an optimal minimum age for voting, but what is evident is that those eligible to vote should have better and easier access to information, registration and voting. A known hurdle to greater youth participation is unequal access to online services and the consequent exclusion of some vulnerable youth groups (the so-called “digital divide”).

Example: Online voter registration system, California, United States

California introduced an online registration system in 2012 before the general election to increase the number of voters and to encourage young people in particular to vote. In one month, more than half of the 1.2 million voters who registered did so through the new online system. Online registration was particularly effective at pulling young people into the state’s voting pool. Citizens under age 25 represented 30% of all online registrants, contributing to an 8% increase in voter registration in this age group (aged 18-25). According to a study by the University of California (Davis, 2012) general voter registration in California grew by 2.1% over 2008 to 76.7% of all eligible voters, and youth registration grew by 13.9%. In addition, voters who registered on line turned out at a higher rate (by 8 percentage points) than those who registered through other methods.

Eligibility: Whole population over age 18, with a focus on young people

Youth opportunities to participate in policy making

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: There are different ways youth may engage in national decision-making processes. An important pathway is running for electoral office. The age at which a citizen can stand for office varies substantially by country. Although some countries have a minimum age of 18, in most, citizens must wait until age 21 or 25 or even 35 or 40. Low eligibility ages may foster representation of young lawmakers in parliaments. Different countries have developed a variety of strategies to elect more young people to parliament, including lowering the minimum age to run for office, setting youth quotas, connecting and supporting networks of young parliamentarians, and building up the next generation of leaders through youth parliaments affiliated with national parliaments. Young people can also serve as members of youth committees and commissions about youth-related issues in local or national governments. Governments have a significant role in creating space for youth participation in public institutions. They can pass legislation to create youth advisory bodies, such as national youth councils, that work with legislators and executives and that institutionalise the youth voice in the policy-making process.

Do they work? Most strategies to increase youth participation in policy making face issues of representativeness. Not all youth have the same resources or opportunities to participate, and reaching out to under-represented youth is difficult. Governments also need to build the capacity of youth to participate meaningfully; provide young people with soft skills (communication, negotiation and critical thinking) and civic education at school to allow for their active participation. Not all youth are equally aware of opportunities to get involved; it is the government’s role to find ways to inform all youth. Inviting the youth voice may risk adultism: authorities who attempt to discourage young people and question their leadership capabilities or negative attitudes towards young leaders by politicians. To invite youth to the policy-making table in earnest requires sensitising politicians in how to communicate and exchange constructively with young people.

Example: Quotas, Kenya

The 2010 Constitution of Kenya reserves seats for two young people – a man and a woman – aged 18-35 in the Upper House, allocated by political parties based on the number of seats won in the election. In addition, the National Assembly has 290 elected members, each elected by voters of single-mandate constituencies, and 12 members nominated by political parties to represent special interests, including youth, people with disabilities and workers, with the relevant list to be composed of alternating male and female candidates.

Eligibility: Young people aged 18–35

Similar initiative: Desayunos Públicos (Public Breakfast), Chile

National Youth Councils

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Young people can also participate in diverse non-governmental platforms that aim to shape the debate and to take action on youth-related issues. For instance, young people can be members of school councils and local youth councils, youth organisations concerning education, health or environmental issues, religious youth organisations, student youth organisations, political youth organisations, cultural youth organisations and many others. They can also participate in national youth councils (NYCs), umbrella organisations that co-ordinate all youth organisations across a country. NYCs can be organisations with different interests and activities and can be government-led or youth-led (see Module 6 in Part II). Some countries also have youth parliaments, which can have formal, informal or no affiliation with national parliaments. Governments have a key role to play in guaranteeing that opportunities for youth participation are not constrained or obfuscated. Many avenues for youth participation lack funding and resources, while their special role in giving young people power over their own lives is not always recognised. Governments should promote a positive environment for youth platforms to flourish. For instance, they should facilitate the registration of youth organisations by recognising legal youth structures and removing any legal barriers to youth participation.

Do they work? Unfriendly national legislation regarding NGOs (e.g. taxes imposed on NGOs, public procurement laws and registration procedures, etc.) can hamper the creation and functioning of youth NGOs. Governments should establish national legislation that acknowledges the existence of youth organisations and national youth councils and allows them to operate in a trustworthy and predictable environment. Lack of predictable funding makes long-term projects difficult to design and carry out. Governments could support the functioning of youth organisations by providing them with regular financing that covers at least administrative and operating costs. Representativeness and the difficulty to reach out to vulnerable and marginalised groups is also a challenge for youth organisations. Not all young people have equal cognitive and non-cognitive skills to participate fully. Both governments and the youth organisations themselves can play a role in helping those young people gain needed skills and in ensuring that organisation membership and audience are appropriately inclusive and diverse.

Example: State Council of Youth Affairs, Lithuania

The State Council of Youth Affairs is a collegial advisory institution under the Department of Youth Affairs established in 1996 by the Lithuanian Parliament. It consists of twelve members: six government officials and six youth organisation representatives delegated by the NGO National Youth Council of Lithuania (LiJOT). The LiJOT president automatically gets a mandate to participate on the State Council, while the government representatives are appointed by the Prime Minister. The chair of the council is a representative of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, whereas the vice-chair is a member of LiJOT. LiJOT’s representatives are delegated by the General Assembly, which elects them for a two-year term by secret ballot. Although decisions of the State Council of Youth Affairs are advisory in nature only, LiJOT implemented a unique system of co-decision making through this co-management structure, where young people have an equal say with government representatives. The council oversees the development, implementation and evaluation of the national youth policy. The council’s representatives set up guidelines in designing youth projects, give suggestions to the Department of Youth Affairs on the implementation of youth policy and provide inter-ministerial recommendations to ministries dealing with youth.

Eligibility: Youth organisations

Participation in the media

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Youth are not only media consumers but also active content producers. An increasing number of young people use media tools to express themselves and connect with peers. The media is key to reaching and engaging youth in civic and political activities and giving them an opportunity to exercise active citizenship. Social media especially is increasingly allowing youth to share ideas and mobilise on diverse issues. Participatory media offers growing opportunities for youth to exert agency in the public sphere by circulating and remixing content, commenting on broadcast content, writing and distributing statements and dialoguing with each other and with leaders in an effort to play a role in shaping the agenda. Through media, youth can reach a large number of their contemporaries and adults to dialogue about their lives and worlds, raise awareness about youth-related issues, and mobilise peers around common concerns without being dependent on establishment-driven institutions. Governments have a role to play in ensuring that all youth have access to media forums, enabling each to express her or his views.

Do they work? Language barriers, both in terms of local languages and difficult terminology, can hinder young people from understanding and participating in traditional and new media communication. Using several languages and simplifying terminology will increase the impact of communication outreach and participation. Access to ICT infrastructure and development of ICT skills are a prerequisite to any successful media participation programme, in particular to ensure inclusion of the most vulnerable groups. Time constraints due to studying or working must be taken into account when engaging with young people. Finally, legal protection of freedom of expression must be guaranteed.

Example: Curious Minds, Ghana

Curious Minds is a youth radio programme about children’s rights broadcast on Ghanaian National Radio. It was started in 1996 by an independent group, Women in Broadcasting, and several organisations joined the initiative over the years, including UNICEF. A group of young people aged 8-18 organise this radio programme and act as presenters and producers of the show under the supervision of a professional journalist, who co-ordinates the activities of the group. More than 60 young people are part of the group, as well as resource people, who help them in framing the discussion from their point of view. Two programmes are produced per week: one in English and one in Ga, the local language. The programme has now expanded to the entire country with the support of Save the Children. The radio programme explores a broad range of educational and developmental topics pertaining to young people and aims to raise awareness about issues related to children’s rights. The programme is divided into parts. First, a “Letter to the one who cares”, written by a young person, addresses a pressing issue from a youth perspective. Other youth then discuss the topic and offer suggestions. In the second segment, the fact corner explores issues in a specific subject area chosen for the week. Children and young members of the radio programme also participate in other community activities, such as visiting rural areas to talk about the importance of education and health and meeting with local adult community leaders and governmental officials to discuss the necessity of including children’s and young voices in development projects.

Targets and eligibility: Children and young people aged 8-18 as producers and the whole population as an audience.

Volunteerism and non-cognitive skills development

Youth service programmes

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Youth service refers to intensive volunteer schemes that engage youth in productive work while potentially increasing their skills and impacting the individuals, organisations and communities with which they work. Service programmes may be international, national or local in scope, and particular groups of volunteers may be targeted based on their age, faith or skills. Providing diverse opportunities for youth to engage in community service allows them to develop skills and gain experience, while promoting the development of a new generation of experienced citizens, activists and volunteers. Community service also allows states to undertake needed projects and provide young people with opportunities for out-of-classroom learning. Some universities require graduates to commit to a long-term service placement upon graduation. Some youth service programmes specifically target unemployed, out-of-school youth, offering the opportunity to access better livelihood opportunities or more formal education and training through their participation. Youth service programmes aim to build job readiness, prepare youth for civic responsibility and, in developing countries, mitigate the effects of high unemployment. Governments that sponsor and co-ordinate national or international service programmes generally partner with NGOs, which implement most service programmes.

Do they work? Efforts to assess the impact of youth service programmes require greater support. Offering financial compensation or non-monetary benefits, for example, remains controversial. Evidence shows that incentives tend to undermine the service ethos and create dependency. A high turnover rate should be expected and taken into account as youth servers move on to explore formal employment opportunities in and outside of their communities. Illiteracy and low levels of education can be a barrier to youth service for many young people, especially among vulnerable groups. The politicisation of youth service programmes has the potential pitfall of furthering the narrow political interest of ruling parties.

Example: Youth Star, Cambodia

Youth Star is a full-time national youth service programme. University graduates are placed for a year in marginalised rural areas to work on local development issues. With the support of community-based partners, the volunteers identify the vulnerable groups and assess priorities of the community to formulate together an action plan. The leading component of the volunteer work is enhancing literacy at a village level and equipping local vulnerable young people with the tools and skills to participate meaningfully in improving life in their communities. The programme focuses on local children at risk and aims to prevent them from dropping out of school or to reintegrate them back into the school system when they have dropped out. In some cases, volunteers teach in schools and provide support to teachers and administration. Such an approach aims at empowering communities, as well as creating lasting collaborative relationships. Youth Star’s major sources of funding are the Cambodian government and international organisations.

Eligibility: University graduates

Example: Red de Voluntariado (Network of Voluntary Work), Chile

In Chile, the Red de Voluntariado (Network of Voluntary Work) aims at offering a forum for discussion between civil society organisations and public authorities on the promotion of volunteerism among young people. In this context, the government organised the Encuentro Nacional de Organizaciones de Voluntariado (National Workshop for Voluntary Organisations) in 2015, gathering more than 70 organisations to develop voluntary activities for young people. Over the last years, the Chilean government established different volunteers’ programmes to foster youth participation in society. Young people can participate in diverse community work programmes that aim to engage youth in the development of Chile and to build their social capital. For instance, the “Cultiva Tu identitad” (Cultivate Your Identity) programme targets students aged 15-18 who present a high level of school vulnerability. This programme gives disadvantaged youths the opportunity to discover the natural heritage of their own country by taking part in environmental education activities in some wild protected areas (Áreas Silvestres Protegidas del Estado). The participants are sensitised on environment protection issues while learning to work as a team. In the same vein, the volunteers’ programme “Vive Tus Parques” allows young people aged 18-29 to participate in a ten days summer or winter camp in the wild protected areas. The participants work to maintain and improve the recreational and public areas, build infrastructures and equipment, and develop environment protection activities.

Eligibility: Youth aged 15-18 and 18-29

Extra-curricular activities

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Participation in diverse recreational activities is a right of every child and is essential for the personal development of children and young people. Structured out-of-school activities in a supervised environment play a key role in preventing or reducing the likelihood and amount of time young people have to engage in risky or harmful behaviours. Recreational activities may also increase young participants’ positive self-image and self-esteem, promote positive social development and improve interpersonal skills. The absence of leisure and recreational facilities and activities for children and young people in many countries is a pressing issue. Governments should commit to developing youth-centred culture and recreation policies and ensuring that all children have access to a minimum standard of safe recreational and cultural facilities. A growing number of schools and community-based organisations have created programmes that provide young people with youth-friendly and safe spaces in which to enjoy productive, supervised activities during their free time. Some recreational programmes aim specifically to reintroduce marginalised youth to learning, encouraging them to continue their education or find employment, reconnecting them with their communities and providing them with life skills.

Do they work? To increase participation, young people should be given a voice in the design, implementation and monitoring of recreation policies and facilities. Special consideration should be given to marginalised groups while the range of recreational opportunities available to disadvantaged young people maximised. Governments should also promote relevant qualifications and standards in the provision of recreational activities. Recreational activities should be provided by high-quality staff who are truly committed and trained to work with vulnerable youth using interactive, youth-led, relevant teaching methods. It is also important to involve family and community members in programme activities to strengthen family and community life. Few rigorous evaluations of youth recreational programmes have been conducted. Thus, it is important to collect data and improve information on and evaluation and monitoring of recreational provisions for young people to assess the needs and design better targeted programmes.

Example: Open Schools Programme, Brazil

The Open Schools Programme was created in 2004 by the Ministry of Education and now operates in all Brazilian states. Public schools are open on weekends for workshops and events on oral communication, artistic expression, physical development, academic support, learning to live together, sociability and citizenship, among others. The Open School Programme provides an opportunity for youth and families living in vulnerable communities to access cultural activities. Youth participation in drama, arts and crafts, music, dance and play-based activities broadens horizons, strengthens self-esteem and can help youths discover a new feeling of belonging to their school and community. Young people play a central role in the programme, since they themselves co-ordinate activities and mobilise the community to participate in the programme. The programme is cost-effective, as it maximises existing public spaces and activities are incorporated into educational practices, utilising their equipment and materials. In addition, it is staffed by volunteers and older young people. In exchange for their commitment, young people receive tuition waivers at private universities throughout the state. The programme adopts a decentralised approach, giving states, municipalities and schools the flexibility to adjust it to local needs. According to UNESCO, schools participating in Pernambuco State’s Abrindo Espaços experienced a 60% reduction in violence, as well as reduced rates of sexual aggression, suicide, substance abuse, theft and armed robbery. Participating schools in other states are also showing positive results (World Bank, 2007b).

Eligibility: School-aged children and their families and communities

Similar initiatives: The After-School Plan for Children, Japan

Mentoring programmes

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Mentoring programmes provide individual guidance and support to young people in need to encourage behavioural change. They have become increasingly popular because of their cost-effectiveness and results in reducing school drop-out, violence and drug use in high-risk areas. A caring and responsible adult, a mentor, is assigned to a young person in need to provide guidance in his or her social, professional and academic life. Mentors are generally volunteers recruited from businesses, schools and other community settings unrelated to the young person. Mentoring provides the young individual with a role model and can either be a free-standing intervention or part of a youth development programme. Some programmes have a goal of promoting positive youth development generally; others adopt more focused objectives within areas of education or employment. Programmes can be one-to-one mentoring, group mentoring (one mentor assigned to one or several youth) or team mentoring (one young person with more than one mentor). Other methods include online mentoring, peer mentoring and school-based programmes.

Do they work? Mentoring programmes are most effective when the mentee is young, so the earlier, the better. Creating a sense of connectedness and building trust may take several years, but they are key to the success of such programmes. Mentoring should consist of regular meetings between mentors and mentees, with a monitoring of progress over time by programme staff. Selection of mentors must be done carefully, with thorough background checks and other screening procedures (e.g. interviews) to assess suitability and make a good match. Mentors should be provided with orientation, training and ongoing support to temper and address their expectations, delineate their role and bridge any differences they may have with the young person. Programme staff should continuously support and supervise the mentor-mentee relationship (e.g. ensure the occurrence of regular meetings, structured activities, development of positive relationships). Additional research would be useful to identify the determinants of successful mentoring and to understand the long-term impact on the participants.

Example: Big Brothers/Big Sisters, United States

Big Brothers/Big Sisters is the largest volunteer-supported mentoring network in the United States. It promotes positive youth development through one-to-one mentoring for youth aged 5-18 who come from single-parent and/or low-income families. The programme assigns children volunteer mentors from families, schools and businesses. The programme aims to improve the self-confidence, social skills and life aspirations of mentees and to reduce risky behaviours. On average, mentors and mentees meet for four hours, three times a month for 12 months. Impact evaluations found that the programme reduced substance abuse and violence, improved parent and peer relationships and improved school attendance and performance. Compared to their peers in the control group, after 18 months in the programme, mentees were 46% less likely to begin using illegal drugs, 27% less likely to begin using alcohol, 52% less likely to skip school and 37% less likely to skip a class (Grossman, 1998).

Eligibility: Disadvantaged and other youth aged 5-18

Similar initiatives: African Women in Agricultural Research and Development programme; Mentor Me India Programme, India

Civic rights and citizenship

Civic education for young people

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: Civic education teaches about the rights and responsibilities of citizenship to young people, including in the areas of peace, human rights, democracy and international understanding. Different institutions help to develop and shape the knowledge, skills and civic character and commitments of young citizens. Family, religious institutions, the media and community groups all exert important influences. Schools have a special role to play in teaching young people the values, skills and knowledge necessary for full participatory citizenship. Schools can fulfil that responsibility through both formal and informal education, from the earliest years and throughout the educational process. Civic education consists of several components: civic knowledge, global knowledge, civic skills and civic dispositions. Civic knowledge concerns the workings of the political system and a young person’s political and civic rights (e.g. freedom of expression, right to vote, right to run for public office) and responsibilities (e.g. respect for the rule of law and the rights and interests of others). Knowledge about global concerns allows their informed participation in civic life. Civic skills include the ability to analyse, evaluate, take and defend positions on public issues and to use their knowledge to participate in civic and political processes. Civic dispositions are those traits necessary to a democracy and which motivate civic commitment to it (e.g. tolerance, public spiritedness, civility, critical thinking, and willingness to listen, negotiate and compromise). Civic education can also comprise a life skills component. Civic education can be provided in the classroom through different methods, such as debates, small group discussions, role play, brainstorming and problem solving.

Do they work? Civic education should be the forum that nurtures a genuine culture of discussion and debate and should avoid a catalogue of set questions and answers. Teachers and staff should be adequately trained in teaching civic knowledge, skills, dispositions and global affairs. Programme content should be adapted to youth: age-appropriate, youth-friendly and interactive. Civic education programmes have to be locally and nationally owned and adapted; however, government-sponsored civic education in academic settings has to be neutral, accurate and not seen as favouring any party or candidate. Governments should partner with NGOs and the media to reach out-of-school youth too.

Example: Uraia Trust Programme, Kenya

Uraia Trust was established in 2011 as a successor to Kenya’s National Civic Education Programme phase I and II. The programme began as an umbrella under which 57 Kenyan civil society organisations supported the training and deployment of civic educators and the dissemination of a national civic education curriculum in Kenya. The programme was designed to respond to the hate campaigns that preceded the 2007/08 post-election violence and to enhance national reconciliation and cohesion, include youth and marginalised groups in the political process and develop leadership accountability. The programme provided civic education to help Kenyan citizens pursue their rights under the new constitution. Before the 2013 election, the programme used a national civic education curriculum, The Citizen Handbook, to disseminate information on the electoral process and system. A total of 359 trained civic educators from 57 civil society organisations helped to disseminate the curriculum. Each civic educator covered at least eight organised groups (youth groups, women’s groups, etc.) in his or her community. In 2013, the Uraia Trust, in partnership with the Kenya Institute of Education, developed an online civic education module for primary and secondary schools. In addition, the programme supports the dissemination of civic education through radio and television programmes. The Uraia Trust continues to carry out civic education programmes, with a focus on citizen participation in the implementation of devolution and promoting social accountability at the county level.

Eligibility: Whole population, with a focus on youth

Similar initiatives: Comprehensive Course of Study, Japan

Registering undocumented youth

☐ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Birth and civil registration are prerequisites for citizenship and act as a permanent and visible recognition by the state of an individual’s existence as a member society. They contribute to the fulfilment of the rights to a name and nationality and are essential for obtaining other legal documents and for realising many other civic and human rights, such as access to education, employment or health care. In addition, birth registration is essential for national planning and monitoring, since it enables the collection of the demographic data required to design effective strategies. However, many births in developing countries are unregistered. Providing birth certificates to undocumented young people is essential for them to access social services, exercise their citizenship and avoid social exclusion and various related negative outcomes, such as anti-social behaviours. In order to achieve universal registration, governments should strengthen civil registry systems, raise awareness about the importance of birth registration as a child’s right, create the necessary infrastructure to reach all of the population and provide birth registration free of charge and as part of the delivery of other public services, for instance health care, education or anti-poverty programmes.

Do they work? Stimulating public demand for documentation requires strong political will and involvement by all levels of society. It requires a sound diagnostic of the situation based on relevant data derived from surveys, census, etc. and co-ordination among all relevant ministries and institutions related to civil registration. Effective programmes establish local registry offices to ensure maximum coverage and build in flexibility to allow for late registration. Governments should encourage people to seek registration services through public campaigns with appropriate content provided in minority languages. Resources can be maximised by integrating birth registration with other services, such as health and education programmes. Special consideration should be given to vulnerable groups of children and youth, who are most at risk for not being registered. Rigorous impact evaluations are vital to assess the effect of documentation programmes on specific outcomes (education, employment, health) for those previously undocumented. To be sustainable, birth registration systems require long-term investment.

Example: Birth registration strategy, Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives undertook significant efforts towards universal birth registration in the 1990s through the creation of a low-cost and accessible birth registration system. It adopted a new legal framework in 2004 (the Birth and Deaths Registration Act); built the capacity of various stakeholders (registrars, local government officials, teachers, health workers, etc.) through training and orientation; improved inter-institutional co-operation among the health, education and birth registration systems; supplied administrative materials; established a national electronic birth registration system; and raised awareness on the importance of birth registration through newsletters, posters, leaflets, audio-visual resources for mass media outlets and interactive popular theatre. The government also declared July 3 Birth Registration Day to highlight the importance of birth registration for every child and adult and the fact that registration is free. Birth registration has become linked with immunisation services. If an unregistered child comes to receive immunisation, the health assistant can report the child to the local registrar to start the process of registration. A similar process occurs in schools, where birth registration is now required for enrolment and where teachers can initiate the process of birth registration for any unregistered children they encounter. Special initiatives have been introduced to register vulnerable and out-of-school children, such as those living in brothels, refugee camps or slums. All these initiatives have resulted in a dramatic increase in birth registration rates. The birth registration rate for children under age 5 increased from 9.8% in 2006 to 53.6% in 2009.

Eligibility: Whole population

Safety and juvenile justice systems

Guaranteeing safe neighbourhoods for youth

☑ Preventive ☐ Second chance

Description: The environment in which young people interact plays a decisive role in their development. Neighbourhoods that are unsafe are associated with negative outcomes, such as juvenile delinquency, crime, high school drop-out or child abuse. By contrast, supportive neighbourhoods are associated with positive outcomes, such as stronger connections with family and peers, greater participation in extra-curricular programmes and better school achievements. Comprehensive safe neighbourhood programmes can modify the environment in which young people live and grow up and prevent them from engaging in risky behaviours. First, governments should strengthen and adapt police response, including setting up targeted police patrols in high-risk areas. Endeavour to enhance the reputation of the police and introduce community and problem-solving policing to make policing more responsive and accountable to local communities and to create bonds of trust with local populations. Second, programmes should offer diverse supervised activities for young people living in unsafe neighbourhoods as healthy alternatives to crime and violence (e.g. second chance education, after-school programmes, cultural activities or sports leagues). Governments should also invest in local services and infrastructure (access to education, health, water, sanitation, waste collection) to ensure the availability and maintenance of public spaces. Urban renewal schemes, such as improving street lighting, ensuring safe routes to school, removing graffiti or planting community gardens, contribute to increased security while stimulating civic spirit and revitalising community life. Infrastructure rehabilitation also creates opportunities for young people to perform community service and gives them an incentive not to damage the environment they have helped to improve. Governments should also restrict access to firearms by undertaking legislative reforms, establishing gun-free zones in a variety of public places, combatting illicit weapons trafficking and conducting awareness campaigns.

Do they work? The most promising interventions to guarantee safe neighbourhoods for youth are those that combine direct and indirect approaches to target both the symptoms and drivers of armed violence and other elements endemic to these neighbourhoods. Where unsafe neighbourhoods result, persist or resist intervention in part from a lack of faith or trust in community policing, governments should undertake important efforts to improve police transparency and ethics: stamp out favouritism, corruption, brutality and misuse of power within the police force and set up a confidential public police complaints system. The police must be trained in dealing with young people and engaging with communities in an open-minded and unbiased way. Strong co-operation among all the relevant ministries and stakeholders at the local level is imperative. Involve the community in identifying the problems of unsafe neighbourhoods, finding solutions and monitoring programme success. Programme costs can be reduced by using existing public spaces, such as schools and community centres. Long-term interventions necessitate sound monitoring to ensure that benchmark objectives are being met.

Example: Mi Barrio Seguro, Dominican Republic

In the Dominican Republic, the Mi Barrio Seguro programme was a pilot programme established in 2005 with the aim of reducing and preventing violence in the Capotillo neighbourhood and then extended to 13 surrounding neighbourhoods. The programme promoted an understanding of citizenship and security as interdependent based on the premise that, by increasing the participation of responsible citizens in security, the security services would also be transformed and develop a greater sensitivity to citizen concerns. Mi Barrio Seguro consisted of increased police patrols in crime “hot spots”, infrastructure improvements (e.g. road entries and exits, public recreational areas), more community policing, neighbourhood security improvements (e.g. street lighting), new classrooms in schools, literacy and civic education programmes, and cultural workshops and sports clinics for young people run by neighbourhood organisations. The government took significant steps to exclude officers with backgrounds of corruption or abuse from working on the programme. Police assigned to the programme received 15 days of pre-service training and a bonus of USD 31 to USD 413 per month over salary, as well as a food bonus. The programme was based on an intensive cross-sectoral co-ordination led by the Ministry of Interior in collaboration with the Ministries of Education, Health, Youth, and Social Protection, the police and community leaders. The programme focused on strengthening community organisations in selected areas to serve as partners in security. Initial evaluations showed a 68% reduction in homicides in pilot neighbourhoods after only six months and an increased sense of security in the neighbourhoods. In 12 of the 13 high-violence neighbourhoods, opinion of the police force improved, which contributed to a further expansion of the programme to other neighbourhoods and cities (World Bank and UNODC, 2006). In addition, the increased policing presence and quality boosted residents’ confidence in the effectiveness of the criminal justice system; the number of complaints to the local Public Prosecutor’s Office from those neighbourhoods rose from approximately 900 to almost 1 200.

Eligibility: Communities in high-risks neighbourhoods, police officers

Enhancing youth juvenile justice systems

☑ Preventive ☑ Second chance

Description: Incarcerating young people has long-lasting negative consequences on the health, well-being and self-esteem of young detainees. Premature or excessive punishment, including incarceration, may result in continued criminal activity after release. Evidence shows that the most effective approaches to reducing youth crime and violence are rehabilitation and second chance opportunities for young delinquents rather than punishment. Governments should adopt and comply with the UN conventions that address juvenile justice, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which requires states to establish a separate juvenile system for youth under age 18 that promotes prevention and community rehabilitation. Governments should invest in effective social reintegration for children and young people who are released from the criminal justice system, for instance through community rehabilitation projects. Higher recidivism rates are also associated with harsh prison conditions, as is incarceration alongside adults. Governments should therefore guarantee special protections for incarcerated youth and that the internment conditions for youth are conducive to a process of rehabilitation. It is imperative that governments review the severity and particulars of youth criminal penalties and adopt alternative measures to incarceration, which should be applied as a last resort. A graduated sanctions approach for first-time and minor repeat offenders should be adopted; graduated sanctions can help the offender understand the consequences of his or her negative behaviour and to learn how to avoid repeating it. Such an approach also helps young delinquents avoid a juvenile court record and prevents them coming into contact with ‘hard core’ offenders in the prison system. Youth courts are believed to reduce recidivism by tapping the power of positive peer influence (Butts and Ortiz, 2011). These are community courts conducted by youth to arbitrate non-violent offences that would otherwise end up in juvenile or adult court. Young people take on a variety of roles (judges, prosecutors, defence attorney, etc.), deliberate and sentence their peers for their offences. Youth courts allow families to re-engage in a positive dialogue with delinquent children, reduce adult court backlogs and provide opportunities for delinquents to learn about citizenship and the law.

Do they work? Juvenile justice systems demand the close co-operation of relevant ministries, local authorities, the police, civil society organisations and community leaders, along with targeted staff training (justice system, police, etc.). Rehabilitative strategies may generate resistance among populations and/or perverse unintended consequences, for instance gangs using juveniles for the most heinous crimes in expectation that the penalties will be less severe and lengthy. Second chances policies should be balanced against the legitimate need to deter violence. Logistically, governments may need to invest in additional infrastructure and training to accommodate alternative sentences of community service, special education, hands-on vocational training and skill development or restorative work. Youth courts must also be adapted to local needs in terms of where they are located and their operational model (for example, an adult judge, a youth judge, a peer jury or a youth tribunal). Local justice systems must allocate sufficient funds to measuring programme outcomes in terms of behavioural changes of the young participants and to making any necessary implementation or structural changes within a programme.

Example: Juvenile Justice Alternatives Project (JJAP), Tajikistan

In 2004, Tajikistan introduced JJAP for youth aged 10-18 to provide alternatives to prosecution and detention for youth charged with criminal offences. Five JJAP projects provided non-residential, community-based rehabilitation programmes that used both state-run child and youth centres and NGOs as resources to provide support and assistance. Each project was staffed by a project co-ordinator, lawyer, a minimum of two social workers and one psychologist, who provided tailored psychosocial programmes and practical assistance to each participant and his or her family. Prior to each programme, all staff received comprehensive training from an international social work specialist. The aim of JJAP was to provide a holistic service to the young offender and address the root causes of the actions and prevent recidivism. Interventions included psychological assessment and support; therapy and family work, including parental skill development; legal support; social services support; and remedial education. A programme was developed following an assessment of the young person’s needs and the needs of his or her family. Some prescribed activities were those offered to all local children through the child and youth centres, such as on civic education and healthy living, and vocational training, classes in soft skills, as well as recreational activities. Basing JJAPs in existing centres allowed for a greater diversity of activity and gave young offenders the opportunity to form relationships with the wider youth population and disassociate with those who were having a negative impact on their lives. The JJAP projects accepted over 250 youth who would otherwise have been charged with a crime and prosecuted. Results showed an average drop of 42% in the rate of juvenile offences in districts where projects operated, while juvenile offences rose by 3% in areas not offering a JJAP (O’Donnell, 2015).

Eligibility: Young offenders aged 10-18

Similar initiatives: Community Accountability Boards, United States

Box 2.1. Using the power of sport as a tool for social change, Laureus Sport for Good, worldwide

The Laureus Sport for Good’s goal is to help young people overcome the limitations imposed by challenging social issues including juvenile crime, gangs, gun and knife violence, HIV/AIDS, discrimination, social exclusion, landmines awareness and health problems like obesity. The mission was inspired by the words of the first Patron of Laureus, Nelson Mandela who said: “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair.” The impact of Laureus Sport for Good is to change over 500 000 young lives through sport, to include widened social networks; improvements in physical and mental health; access to accredited qualifications, training placements, or employment; reduced risky sexual behaviour; reduced discrimination or stereotyping; increased confidence and self-esteem.

Source: www.laureus.com

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Part II.

Youth policy design and advocacy: A technical guide for policy analysts

Chapter 3.

Measuring deficits in youth well-being (Module 1)

This module provides guidelines to identify and quantify the main challenges facing youth in terms of well-being. It describes the five selected dimensions to analyse youth well-being (health, education and skills, employment, civic participation and empowerment, and some elements associated with overall life evaluation, feelings and meaning), and proposes a number of quantitative indicators that could be used to measure and analyse the extent of the deficits affecting youth in each dimension. The final part of this module introduces a method to calculate the number of youth suffering from multiple deprivations: the Youth Multi-dimensional Deprivation Indicator (Y-MDI).

Several frameworks have been proposed to measure the different aspects of youth well-being. Among them, it is worth mentioning the UN World Programme of Action for Youth, with its 15 priority areas and recommended indicators (UN DESA, 2010); the Global Youth Wellbeing Index, developed by the International Youth Foundation (www.youthindex.org); the Youth Development Index of the Commonwealth Youth Programme (youthdevelopmentindex.org); and the World Bank toolkit to support youth at risk in middle-income countries (World Bank, 2008). The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has long promoted the measurement of well-being and has embedded the notion at the core of policy making.

Following the OECD well-being adjusted framework (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor, 2014), the present toolkit considers youth well-being in terms of both objective and subjective measures (see Box 3.1). It further focuses on five dimensions of well-being that are deemed to be especially relevant for youth and the various transitions occurring in this particular period of life: health, education and skills, employment, participation and empowerment, and some elements associated with overall life evaluation, feelings and meaning (Table 3.1). See Annex 3.A1 for the full list of proposed indicators, their definitions and sources of data.

Box 3.1. The OECD well-being framework and the adjusted framework for developing countries

The OECD well-being framework identifies three pillars for understanding and measuring people’s well-being. First, it emphasises that people’s perceived experiences of their life (quality of life) is as important as objective measures (material conditions). Second, it focuses on well-being outcomes as opposed to well-being drivers (e.g. health conditions and not the number of surgical interventions). Third, it looks at inequalities across population groups and across the full range of well-being dimensions, rather than limiting to material conditions (i.e. poverty). The framework considers 11 dimensions of well-being and four capitals to ensure sustainability. The adjusted framework adapts the well-being measurement indicators to the context of developing countries and considers the capitals as a dynamic “systems” of collective goods and resources, emphasising the interdependencies across these various types of resources.

Figure 3.1. The OECD well-being framework

Sources: OECD (2011), How’s Life? Measuring Well-being; Boarini, Kolev and McGregor (2014), Measuring well-being and progress in countries at different stages of development: Towards a more universal conceptual framework.

Table 3.1. Youth well-being dimensions

Health | Education and skills | Employment | Civic participation and empowerment | Life evaluation, feelings and meaning

Mortality and morbidity

Sexual and reproductive health (SRH)

Substance abuse

Personal health satisfaction

Participation and progression

Completion and attainment

Learning achievement

Education satisfaction

Social and emotional skills

Access

Quality

Job satisfaction

Social capital

Civic and political engagement

Crime and violence

Life evaluation, feelings and meaning

Health

Adolescence is a stage full of opportunities to adopt a healthy lifestyle, and youth are often portrayed as the very emblem of health. Yet, it is also a time of exposure to certain risky behaviours in terms of sexual relations and substance abuse. Basic youth health indicators usually include mortality and morbidity, SRH and substance abuse. These provide an objective measure of the health situation and are best complemented by subjective measures of personal health satisfaction (Table 3.2).

Table 3.2. Youth well-being indicators: health
Mortality and morbidity | SRH | Substance abuse | Subjective indicator
Mortality rate Disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) | Adolescent birth rate Maternal mortality ratio Prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) | Prevalence of illicit drug use Adolescent alcohol consumption Adolescent tobacco consumption | Personal health satisfaction

Mortality and morbidity. Mortality followed by morbidity are unquestionably the worst outcomes affecting youth, as well as the rest of the population. There are many causes leading to morbidity and death among youth. Among the most important globally are road injury, communicable diseases (HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections), malnutrition (iron-deficiency anaemia), depression, suicide and violence (WHO, 2014). To measure the extent of morbidity and death among youth, two major indicators from the World Health Organization (WHO) can be used: the youth mortality rate and the youth rate of DALYs.

The youth mortality rate considers all causes of death. The youth mortality rate should therefore be disaggregated at least by major cause groups: i) communicable, maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions; ii) non-communicable diseases; iii) unintentional injuries; and iv) intentional injuries. The suicide rate (death by self-harm) in particular should be considered to emphasise the importance of mental illness among youth and its potentially devastating effect. The youth mortality indicator can be complemented by the youth DALYs rate, which combines mortality and morbidity data. The latter is a measure of the years of healthy life lost due to ill health, disability or premature death from all causes. It estimates the gap between the current health status and an ideal health status, with the young population living to an advanced age free of disease and disability.

SRH. In adolescence, individuals start to become sexually sensitised and active. Risky behaviours that lead to early initiation and unprotected sex can lead to a variety of adverse outcomes, from STIs to unintended pregnancies that can lead to maternal mortality. The selected indicators on SRH reflect the three major challenges to adolescents and youth. The first two – adolescent birth rate and maternal mortality ratio – are specific to women and are part of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicators. Globally, maternal conditions come in second among causes of mortality in adolescent girls (WHO, 2014). The third indicator, which concerns both men and women, measures the prevalence of youth STIs, of which HIV is the most acute and pervasive. According to WHO, HIV/AIDS is the second leading cause of mortality among adolescents, and HIV/AIDS-related deaths are estimated to have increased since the new millennium (2014). Besides HIV, the most widespread STIs include syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and trichomoniasis, which are currently curable, and hepatitis B, herpes simplex virus (HSV or herpes) and human papillomavirus (HPV), which are incurable, as is HIV.

Substance abuse. At an age when individuals are in the process of forming their identity, adolescents are more easily influenced by others and face higher risks for engaging in abuse of substances, such as tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs, with immediate and lifelong negative consequences. These indicators give an idea of the number of adolescents or youth who have consumed any of these substances in the recent past. Early interventions can prevent addictions and subsequent negative impacts on youth development. It has been demonstrated, for instance, that the use of substances in adolescence is associated with poor cognitive development, mental health disorders, injuries, violence, non-communicable diseases and premature death. Barring death, these adverse effects can extend into adulthood (WHO, 2014).

Box 3.2. Teenage pregnancy in Côte d’Ivoire

Teenage pregnancy is widespread phenomenon in Côte d’Ivoire, which increased drastically from 19.6% in 2005 to 31.9% in 2012. This trend is particularly worrisome as early pregnancy will affect education and future employment prospects for these girls.

Figure 3.2. Adolescent pregnancy rate, by place of residence

Source: OECD Development Centre (2017), Examen du bien-être et des politiques de la jeunesse en Côte d’Ivoire.

Education and skills

Youth education and skills are a dimension crucial for work and life. Objective educational outcomes usually focus on the following areas: i) participation and progression; ii) completion and attainment; and iii) learning achievements. They can be complemented by a subjective measure of general satisfaction with the educational system (Table 3.3).

Table 3.3. Youth well-being indicators: education and skills

Participation and progression | Completion and attainment | Learning achievement | Subjective indicator

Enrolment in secondary education

Enrolment in tertiary education

School life expectancy

Drop-out rate

Graduation from lower secondary education

Educational attainment

Mean years of schooling

Literacy rate

Poor academic performance

Education satisfaction

Participation and progression. School enrolment is the main indicator on youth participation in education. This indicator should be computed for different levels of education – e.g. primary, secondary and tertiary – to identify gaps at different stages. Alternatively, indicators on school attendance could be used. The latter are likely to provide a better reflection of education participation, as not all enrolled youth are necessarily attending school. Another participation measure, school life expectancy assesses the number of years youth can expect to spend within different levels of education. One of the worst outcomes youth can experience is to leave school prematurely without completing their education, as identified by school drop-out rates. These should be measured for different levels of education to assess the stages at which school survival is more threatened.

Completion and attainment. Educational attainment usually refers to the highest level of education attained or completed. Like other education indicators, it is based on the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) classification, which ranges from no schooling to tertiary education. Completion and attainment give a good indication of the level of formal skills acquired by youth. Completion and attainment can also be measured by the less precise mean years of schooling: the average number of completed years, excluding years spent repeating individual grades. Substantial progress has been achieved worldwide to give children greater access to education, yet school completion is far from universal, especially at the lower secondary level (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO], 2014). To document and monitor this last phenomenon, it is particularly recommended to rely on the gross graduation rate for lower secondary education. Gross graduation rate refers to the total number of graduates (regardless of age) at the specified level of education, divided by the population at the theoretical graduation age from the specified level.

Box 3.3. Dropouts in Cambodia

The combination of high dropout rates and low enrolment in the next level leaves a small pool of young people in school. The Youth Well-being Review of Cambodia estimates that 63% of youth of secondary and tertiary school age have left the education system. In 2015/16, although gross enrolment rates for primary school were 110%, only 80% of these students completed the primary education cycle. Enrolment and completion rates continue to cascade down in lower and upper secondary education. Low-education is a key driver of high level of skills mismatch and poor working conditions for youth.

Figure 3.3. Gross enrolment and completion rates for different levels, 2010/11 and 2015/16

Source: OECD Development Centre (2017), Youth Well-being Review of Cambodia.

Learning achievement. The most basic indicator on learning achievement is the youth literacy rate, which measures the percentage of youth who can both read and write with understanding a short, simple statement on their everyday life. While essential, literacy is only one of the cognitive skills youth need to develop and to succeed in life. Several international surveys have been implemented to assess the proficiency of students in a number of cognitive skills. For instance, OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) surveys evaluate the performance of youth age 15 in reading, mathematics and science. Scores can be used to determine the percentage of low performers in terms of learning achievement in these different areas.

Employment

The passage from schooling to the labour market may be one of the most critical transitions in a young person’s life. Not all youth have the chance to transition quickly into employment and/or access decent work. The ILO defines decent work as opportunities for work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for families, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity and treatment for all women and men. For some, it takes a long time to secure decent jobs. In the meantime, they may be stuck in untenable situations: unemployed, underemployed or working poor-quality jobs. Others may not have even started the transition and remain inactive, with no future plans to work. A successful school-to-work transition is relatively short and leads to quality jobs. The level of job satisfaction is another important measure of youth well-being in the workplace (Table 3.4).

Table 3.4. Youth well-being indicators: employment

Access | Quality | Subjective indicator

Labour market transition stages

Not in education, employment or training (NEET) rate

Labour market transition length

Employment status

Informal employment rate

Vulnerable employment rate

Poorly paid

Time-related underemployment rate

Qualifications mismatch

Job satisfaction

Access to employment. The first recommended indicator on access to employment considers the three stages of transition to the labour market: transition not yet started, in transition, transition completed. The second proposed indicator focuses on a particularly vulnerable group among youth who have not yet successfully transitioned to employment; NEET youth are neither working nor studying. The NEET rate is a good overall indicator on the underutilisation or potential underutilisation of youth labour, especially when combined with the underemployment rate. However, the NEET rate aggregates individuals with very different situations and challenges and needs to be interpreted and analysed with care. Specifically, analysis of NEET youth should look separately at i) unemployed non-students (preferably defined using the relaxed definition of unemployment, which includes discouraged job-seekers in addition to unemployed workers looking for work); and ii) inactive non-students (those neither in the labour force nor in education or training [NLFET] who have either future plans to work or no intention to look for work). The third indicator, labour market transition length, looks at the time it takes to get a job. It is worth noting that a short transition is not necessarily a good thing, especially in low-income countries where the informal sector is large, and youth end up taking the first, potentially poor job they are offered. Long transitions, on the other hand, are more common in developed or emerging economies, where youth unemployment rates are high and transition time, in extreme cases, can last up to three years.

Quality of employment. Job quality is a major concern among youth, especially in developing countries. Several indicators cover the multiple facets of quality of employment, aiming to capture the most recurrent features of poor-quality youth jobs, namely informal employment, vulnerable employment, low earnings, time-related underemployment and skills mismatch (International Labour Organization [ILO], 2013). These poor job attributes are often interrelated. For instance, Shehu and Nilsson show that informality among youth is associated with lower remuneration, job dissatisfaction (the majority of informally employed youth express the desire to change their employment situation), skills mismatch (undereducation), and underemployment, both in terms of working time and income (2014). Informality is a complex and highly heterogeneous phenomenon often difficult to fully capture from existing data sources in developing countries. Alternatively, vulnerable employment can be used as a proxy for informal employment. Vulnerable employment encompasses forms of employment (e.g. own-account and contributing family work) that are, in most cases, characterised by poor working conditions. Indicators on the quality of employment are complemented by a subjective measure, which informs on the share of youth who report being dissatisfied with their jobs.

Civic participation and empowerment

Youth participation and empowerment are important rights for the well-being of youth. Participation looks at a young person’s level of engagement in political and social activities. Empowerment is a broad concept touching on many critical areas of youth inclusion and well-being, including social and human empowerment, economic empowerment, women’s empowerment and political empowerment (MSActionAid-Denmark, 2010). Generally speaking, it can be seen as the full capacity of a young person to exercise his or her rights as a citizen. As put forward in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Youth Strategy 2014-2017, youth empowerment requires guaranteeing their rights to participate in government decision making and processes at the national, sub-national and local levels (UNDP, 2014). Participation and empowerment are, however, only made possible by the existence and enforcement of legal frameworks that protect youth rights to participate in civic and political activities and to freedom of expression. In areas where crime rates are high or social norms induce young people to criminal and risky behaviours, it is unlikely that social capital can be built and young people can engage in civic and political activities. This dimension therefore includes measures of crime and violence.

The present toolkit considers three different areas of well-being related to youth participation and empowerment: i) social capital; ii) civic and political engagement; and iii) crime and violence (Table 3.5).

Table 3.5. Youth well-being indicators: civic participation and empowerment

Social capital | Civic and political engagement | Crime and violence

Social network support

Trust in institutions

Civic engagement

Voices among youth

Voting rate

Rate of formal contact with the police/criminal justice

Rate of detainment

Homicide rate

Rate of victims of assault

Gender-based domestic violence

Social capital. Youth who lack social support networks are isolated and often excluded from society and, as such, experience a form of deprivation in well-being. To measure the extent of this deficit, an indicator for the rate of youth who receive social network support is proposed, defined as those who have relatives or friends on whom they can count in case of need.

Civic and political engagement. Civic engagement can take many forms, including volunteering to an organisation, donating money to a charity or helping a stranger in need of help. These three criteria are used to define the rate of youth civically engaged. The indicator on political engagement relates to youth voter turnout. It measures the percentage of youth who declare that they vote when elections take place, be it at the local or national level. An additional indicator can be proposed to account for youth who voice their opinions. It is proxied by the percentage of youth who have recently voiced their opinion to a public official.

Crime and violence. Criminal and violent behaviours can lead to severe adverse consequences for both perpetrators and victims. Two indicators are proposed as regards perpetrators. The rate of juveniles brought into formal contact with the police or the criminal justice system relates to those who are suspected, arrested or cautioned. The rate of juveniles detained refers to those who are held in prisons or penal or correctional institutions. As regards victims, the two indicators selected focus on the worst scenarios: homicide and non-fatal assault resulting in serious bodily injury. An indicator on gender-based domestic violence is further recommended, given its overall significant extent – especially among adolescent and young girls – and the serious and long-lasting damages it can cause victims, from restricted physical integrity and poor health outcomes to increased vulnerability and poverty (OECD, 2014).

Box 3.4. Youth crime and violence in El Salvador

In El Salvador youth are both offenders and victims of crimes. The country is strongly marked by violence and insecurity, due to rivalling gangs. These gangs (or maras) have become criminal structures with a high level of territorial power. After the end of the truce (2012-15) between the two largest gangs and government forces, the level of violence and insecurity started rising again, becoming a majo concern for the population and social cohesion.

The violence in El Salvador manifests itself in homicides, kidnapping, extortion and other forms. Young people are affected morally and physically by the level of violence and insecurity: in 2013 18.4% of adolescents (age 13 to 17) reported being physically attacked in the last 12 months. Young girls are particularly vulnerable to sexual aggression. The young age of most gang members and the often negative portrait of youth in media coverage influences the image of youth in the country, stigmatising those who live in neighbourhoods with high crime rates. This climate makes free movement difficult and limits community activities (sports, arts, public spaces, etc.) which erodes the social fabric.

Table 3.6. Number of young people victim of crime in El Salvador, 2014, per 100 000 minors
| Total | Male | Female
Homicide rate, youth | n.a. | 208.1 | 13.8
Homicide rate, all ages | n.a. | 120.2 | 8.7
Rape, age 18-30 | 1.52 | n.a. | 2.9
Sexual aggression, age 0-17 | 15.01 | 1.5 | 29.1
Statutory rape | 56.4 | 0.9 | 114.0
Source: OECD Development Centre (2017), Youth Well-being Review of El Salvador.

Life evaluation, feelings and meaning

Life evaluation, feelings and meaning is an important subjective dimension of well-being. This dimension is too often overlooked in spite of its importance, which is increasingly recognised (Table 3.7). Life evaluation, feelings and meaning matter, first because youth are the best judges of their life situations, and second because how youth evaluate, experience and give sense to their lives has direct implications to their behaviours and subsequent outcomes (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor, 2014).

Table 3.7. Youth well-being indicators: life evaluation, feelings and meaning
Life evaluation | Feelings | Meaning
Dissatisfied with life | Negative feelings | Low sense of purpose in life

Life evaluation. Life evaluation provides important information on the overall personal assessment of youth life quality. A positive life evaluation is typically associated with other positive well-being outcomes, including, for instance, higher social connections and productivity at work (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor, 2014). The indicator selected captures the percentage of youth who are currently dissatisfied with their lives as a whole.

Feelings. Measures of youth’s feelings, be they positive (e.g. joy, contentment, pride) or negative (e.g. fear, fatigue, anxiety), are good complements to the information provided by life satisfaction, since they are less affected by memory-biases and map more directly onto youth’s daily activities. One relevant indicator is the rate of youth with negative feelings, defined as the percentage who experienced at least one of the following feelings during most of the day before the interview: anger, depression, sadness, stress or worry.

Meaning. Having a meaning in life, beliefs or spirituality – sometimes referred to as having a purpose in life – is important to young people and something from which they draw strength to cope with the many challenges they face (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor 2014 2014). The related indicator is the share of youth who feel that their lives do not have an important purpose. A low sense of purpose in life is detrimental for youth well-being, both in the present and in their future lives. It is often associated with social isolation, poor non-cognitive skills and mental disorders, such as depression.

Youth Multi-dimensional Deprivation Indicator (Y-MDI)

The above assessment gives a good picture of the situation of the youth population in a country in each of the five well-being dimensions. However, the analysis is limited to a snapshot per sector. In reality, many young people are affected by multiple dimensions and are at risk for falling into multiple deprivations. Multiple deprivations reinforce each other, making it even more difficult for a young person to overcome his or her deficits and perform in any one dimension. Discourse on measuring the various dimensions of well-being has been prevalent since the 1990s with the UNDP’s Human Development Report (UNDP, 1990). In more recent years, the OECD has launched its Better Life Initiative (OECD, 2011). This framework has also been applied to the developing context by Boarini, Kolev and McGregor (2014), whose work also serves as a comprehensive review of the development of the discourse on multi-dimensional measurement over the years. This section introduces a method to calculate the number of youth suffering from multiple deprivations and presents a number of tools to analyse the multi-dimensionality of youth well-being.

A multi-dimensional indicator complements the dashboard of youth well-being indicators by providing a simpler and more concise way to monitor the overall well-being of youth and measure progress over time (OECD/EU/JRC, 2008; Alkire and Foster, 2007). This can also be useful for policy advocacy (Saltelli, 2007). The indicator allows identification of overlaps in deprivations, which helps to promote synergies among different sectoral policies, bringing a more cohesive approach to youth-related interventions (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor, 2014). Box 3.5 illustrates how a well-designed youth health policy can have positive effects on multiple dimensions of well-being.

Box 3.5. Kenya’s Primary School Deworming Project (PSDP): An example of effective multi-dimensional youth health policy targeting

In many developing countries, school absenteeism presents a sizable challenge. Qualitative surveys and interviews often mention challenges, such as cost, distance and a lack of school uniforms and other necessities. Education policies typically focus on subsidies and other provision strategies to boost school attendance, with mixed success.

Health policies for children focus on a wide range of risk factors. Among them, 600 million school-aged children worldwide are troubled by intestinal worms. While mild infections often go unnoticed, severe infections can cause iron-deficiency anaemia, malnutrition and stunting, all of which typically have lasting negative effects over the life cycle. Oral deworming pills have proven tremendously effective; they kill most types of worms at a price of USD 0.50 per child per year. The key challenge and pressing issue is sustainable, widespread provision, as the pills only prove effective in preventing rapid spread if a sufficient number of children takes them.

Between 1998 and 2001, the non-governmental organisation (NGO) International Child Support ran the PSDP in western Kenya. It had strong effects in the areas of health, education and future employment. It reduced worm infections by 70%. It reduced school absenteeism by 25% and increased girls’ pass rates in Kenya’s national primary school exit programmes by 9.5 percentage points. Finally, men who were dewormed as children worked 3.4 more hours per week, spent more time in entrepreneurial activities and were more likely to work in higher-wage manufacturing jobs than their untreated peers.

Source: J-PAL 2012.

The construction of the Y-MDI involves three steps. Step 1 defines the youth well-being conceptual framework against which youth deprivations will be measured. Step 2 selects the specific indicators within each dimension that will be measured. Step 3 calculates the final headcount in deprivations and overlaps to generate the Y-MDI.

Step 1. Define the youth well-being conceptual framework

The first step in the construction of the Y-MDI is to define the conceptual framework against which youth well-being dimensions will be measured. The capabilities approach describes well-being in terms of freedom to achieve desired ways of living (i.e. capabilities), and well-being may be seen as a set of inter-related capabilities. According to this approach, youth should be given the opportunities to be and do what they have reason to value (Sen, 1998; Deneulin and Shahani, 2009). A complementary framework, called the asset-based approach, views youth as change agents who are capable of creating their own solutions in the absence of public policies. In this approach, a public institution’s main role is to provide an environment where youth are included and able to use their assets (skills, knowledge, initiatives) (McKnight and Kretzmann, 1996). Both approaches argue for the provision of a minimum of capabilities, which unlock youth well-being outcomes.

The above well-being concepts provide the framework which will guide the normative decisions for the construction of the Y-MDI. First, the framework defines which dimensions are needed to achieve the minimum conditions for well-being. It is important that each dimension is clearly distinguished from another and does not overlap in measurement. Second, it differentiates well-being needs or capabilities for youth aged 15-29 using a life cycle approach. For example, youth aged 15-17 need different capabilities than those aged 18-29, the former being school age and the latter likely being in the labour force. Third, it determines what type of measures best capture these capabilities. Indicators can measure both well-being outcomes (e.g. educational attainment) and inputs such as the freedom to go to school (e.g. access to education). Furthermore, indicators can be both objective and subjective measures. The recent discourse on well-being is converging around the view that well-being is both the satisfaction of objective needs and wants, as well as the quality of life which youth experience, i.e. subjective measures (Boarini, Kolev and McGregor, 2014).

The Y-MDI selects four dimensions as the minimum well-being conditions for youth: education, employment, health and civic participation. For comparability, objective output measures are chosen when data are available. Subjective measures are used only when objective measures are not available. The data of all the dimensions need to be available within one dataset so the same youth are measured on all the indicators. This makes Y-MDI a challenging exercise when household surveys only capture a few dimensions.

Step 2. Select the indicators

The second step in the construction of the Y-MDI is to select the indicators to measure well-being within each of the four dimensions. The decision on the number of indicators per dimension is guided by the rule of parsimony (i.e. explaining as much information with the least number of indicators). There are no strict criteria on the number of indicators to include per dimension, but it is important that the selected indicators capture the different ways a youth can be deprived within the dimension. For example, for education, indicators should capture the educational attainment but also the quality of education received. Selecting too few indicators risks missing important well-being aspects, whereas too many will cause overlap among them. The number of indicators per dimension should be more or less the same to ensure a balanced measurement across dimensions.

Each selected indicator needs to be statistically robust, meaning that it has variance, is valid and is internally consistent with the other indicators in the dimension (De Neubourg et al., 2012):

Variance means that, within the sample, there needs to be both youth who are deprived and not deprived of that indicator. If nearly all youth score similar values, it is arguably not a discriminating indicator.

Validity means that the indicator should capture what it intends to capture (no systematic measurement error). Lack of validity is a common problem with subjective data, where youth tend to under-report unpopular behaviours (e.g. criminal acts) and over-report socially desirable behaviours (e.g. voting when non-compliance is punished). Also, when facing data constraints, using proxies can be a solution; however, they should exclusively capture the concept that they intend to measure. Otherwise, they may bias the results. There is no way to test for validity statistically. Therefore, the selection of an indicator should have solid argumentation.

Internal consistency means that the indicators within a dimension are complementary measures of deprivation. This can be checked statistically by cross-tabulating each selected indicator with every other indicator within the same dimension. Summing up the percentage of youth who are deprived in both indicators simultaneously plus those who are not deprived in both indicators captures the overlap between the two indicators. Internally consistent indicators have a sufficient degree of overlap – meaning that they measure the same construct; for example, years of schooling and literacy both capturing education – while at the same time measuring something unique within the dimension.

Determining the threshold where a youth is considered deprived is a difficult exercise due to diverging views on the definition of deprivation. Using internationally-agreed definitions or national legislation is the best way to go. International standards often use a rights-based approach, where minimum values are given to fulfil basic rights. For example, the SDGs state that all boys and girls should complete quality primary and secondary education. This can be operationalised using an indicator on educational attainment that sets a threshold at lower secondary education as the minimum level.

Missing data and non-applicable data are important issues to consider. Missing data occur when survey respondents miss information for no intended reason; non-applicable data are when respondents miss information because the question did not apply to him or her. Both are problematic because lacking values on any one indicator makes it impossible to measure the respondent on all other indicators.

In case of missing variables, the respondent cannot be analysed and is therefore excluded from the analysis. If an indicator has more than 5% missing values, the indicator is in danger of being contaminated with bias and therefore should not be used (Schafer, 1999).

In case of non-applicable values, it is important to know why respondents are not scored on the indicator. Because non-applicable values are not missing values, these youth are still included in the analysis by counting them as not deprived for the indicators that do not apply. This imputation can undercount deprivation. If severe undercounting is expected, the non-applicability can be taken as a sign of diverging needs among different age groups and serve as a basis to make a life cycle split. Non-applicable indicators should be kept to a minimum.

There are three methods to identify those deprived within a dimension. One is by counting those who are deprived in any one indicator within a dimension (union approach). The other is by counting those deprived in all indicators in a dimension (intersection approach). The third method assigns different weights to each indicator, thus creating a ranking among them. In practice, this last often creates contentions on the various methods of assigning weights (Decancq and Lugo, 2013). For this toolkit, a union approach is preferred, as the indicators are designed to capture a minimum well-being state. Thus, a youth deprived on one indicator is sufficient to be considered deprived on the whole dimension (Alkire and Foster, 2011).

The Y-MDI measures the minimum level of functionings within each dimension. Youth should have a minimum level of quality education (SDG 4.1, 4.4 and 4.6), be able to access high-quality employment once they are in the labour force (SDG 8.6 and 8.8), enjoy healthy lives and have access to SRH (SDG 3.4 and 3.7), and be able to participate as citizens with access to associations and information (SDG 16.6 and 16.10). Table 3.8 shows the basic indicators and thresholds of the Y-MDI.

Table 3.8. Y-MDI basic indicators and thresholds
Dimension | Description | Indicators (15-17) | Indicators (18-29)
Education | Early school leavers* and lower secondary school attainment | Not enrolled and not completed lower secondary education | Not completed lower secondary education
Education quality | Literacy rate (or other national cognitive test results)
Employment | Unemployment and inactivity | Not in employment, education or training |
Job quality and child labour | Working more than 48 hours per week | Paid less than 60% of median wage
Working in hazardous jobs with low safety standards
Health | Ability to function in daily physical and mental tasks | Experiencing difficulties in basic physical and mental tasks or having a permanent disability
Access to SRH services | Rate of STIs
Civic participation | Freedom to join an association | Barriers to join associations
Access to information | Access to the Internet
* Any individual not having finished lower secondary school is considered an early school leaver.

Step 3. Identification and sub-analysis

The third and final step in the construction of the Y-MDI is the calculation and analysis. The Y-MDI can answer four broad questions on youth well-being at the national level:

What percentage of youth are multi-dimensionally deprived? This is answered by the calculation of the headcount ratio provided by the Y-MDI. This headcount is calculated by summing the number of youth who are multi-dimensionally deprived and dividing this number over the total number of youth within the age group of interest. This provides the percentage of youth within the country that are multi-dimensionally deprived.

Of all youth with at least one deprivation, what is the headcount of those with one deprivation, two deprivations, etc.? This is answered by calculating separate headcount ratios for youth with one deprivation, those with two, etc. This gives an impression of the amount of youth with different numbers of deprivations.

Which dimensions overlap each other? This is answered by the calculation of deprivation overlaps, which expresses which deprivations youth experience simultaneously. This overlap can be illustrated by combining a maximum of three dimensions in a Venn diagram. The diagram comprises a maximum of seven different groups of youth, consisting of those with no overlap (three groups), those with overlap in two of the dimensions (three groups) and those with overlap in all three dimensions (one group).

What is the most prevalent form of deprivation among young people? This is answered through the calculation of headcounts for each deprivation separately and portraying the values in a radar chart (also referred to as spider graph).

The Y-MDI was calculated for Viet Nam using 2015 data from the ILO school-to-work transition survey (SWTS). The indicator shows that 11% of youth aged 18-29 and 10% of youth aged 15-17 were deprived in at least two dimensions (Figures 3.4 and 3.5). Younger youth experienced deprivations mostly in employment, whereas older youth showed the most deficits in education (Figures 3.6 and 3.7). Finally, for the younger youth, employment deprivation strongly overlapped with deficits in education, which could imply that they entered vulnerable employment or became unemployed after dropping out of education (Figure 3.8). Interestingly, for older youth, deprivation in employment was, in most cases, not interconnected with deficits in education, showing that the deprivation did not necessarily stem from a lack of education and vice versa. Rather, those with high educational attainment still experienced deficits in employment (Figure 3.9). This is in line with research findings from the Vietnamese Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) showing that youth with the highest unemployment rates are those with tertiary degrees (MOLISA, 2016).

Figure 3.4. Share of youth deprived in one or more dimensions, among age group 15-17, Viet Nam, 2015 (%)

Figure 3.5. Share of youth deprived in one or more dimensions, among age group 18-29, Viet Nam, 2015 (%)

Figure 3.6. Composition of deprivation among youth (15-17), Viet Nam, 2015

Figure 3.7. Composition of deprivation among youth (18-29), Viet Nam, 2015

Figure 3.8. Overlaps in deprivations among youth aged 15-17, Viet Nam, 2015

Figure 3.9. Overlaps in deprivations among youth aged 18-29, Viet Nam, 2015

Source: OECD Development Centre (2017), Youth Well-being Policy Review of Viet Nam.

ANNEX 3.A1.

Youth Well-being Indicators

Table 3.A1.1. Youth health
Main indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Prevalence of STIs | Percentage of individuals aged 15-24 reporting a STI in the 12 months preceding the survey among those who ever had sexual intercourse. | Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program – STATcompiler | DHS
Adolescent birth rate | Annual number of births to women aged 15-19 per 1 000 women in that age group. | Global SDG Indicators Database | Civil registration data, household surveys (DHS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]-assisted reproductive health surveys, etc.), population census
Mortality rate, by major cause group | Number of deaths per 100 000 individuals aged 15-29 by main causes, including maternal conditions, mental and behavioural disorders, self-harm (suicide) and violence (interpersonal, collective violence and legal intervention). | WHO – Global Health Estimates (GHE), cause-specific mortality estimates | Vital (death) registration data
Secondary indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Adolescent alcohol consumers | Percentage of individuals aged 15-19 who have consumed any alcohol in the past 12 months. | WHO – Youth and alcohol data | National surveys; international surveys: World Health Survey, STEPwise approach to surveillance; Gender, alcohol, and culture: An international survey; European Cancer Anaemia Survey
Adolescent tobacco consumers | Percentage of individuals aged 13-15 who are current users of any tobacco product (those who consumed any smokeless or smoking tobacco product at least once in the past 30 days prior to the survey). | WHO – Global youth tobacco survey (GYTS) data | GYTS
Annual prevalence of illicit drug use by drug type | Percentage of youth (no standardised age range across countries) who used at least once in the past year i) heroin; ii) cocaine; iii) cannabis; iv) amphetamines; or v) ecstasy. | United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) – Drug use statistics | Annual Reports Questionnaire, school surveys, youth risk behaviour surveys, household surveys, government sources

Maternal mortality ratio

Annual number of female deaths from any cause related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management (excluding accidental or incidental causes) during pregnancy and childbirth or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, per 100 000 live births.

Global SDG Indicators Database

Civil registration data, household surveys, population census, sample or sentinel registration systems, special studies

Rate of DALYs, all causes | Years of healthy life lost due to ill health, disability or premature death from all causes per 100 000 individuals aged 15-29. | WHO – GHE, Global Burden of Disease data | Vital (death) registration data, Global Burden of Disease 2010 study
Personal health satisfaction | Percentage of individuals who are satisfied with their personal health. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys

Table 3.A1.2. Youth education and skills
Main indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Net enrolment rate in secondary education | Number of students enrolled in secondary education in the theoretical age group for secondary education, expressed as a percentage of the official school-age population corresponding to secondary education. | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | School register, school survey or census for data on enrolment by level of education; population census or estimates for school-age population
Gross graduation ratio from lower secondary education | Number of graduates (regardless of age) from lower secondary education, expressed as a percentage of the population at the theoretical graduation age for that level of education. | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | School register, school survey or census for data on graduation by level of education; population census or estimates for school-age population
Drop-out rate | Cumulative drop-out rate to the last grade of i) primary education; and ii) lower secondary general education. | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | National population census, household surveys, labour force surveys
Literacy rate | Percentage of youth aged 15-24 who can both read and write with understanding a short, simple statement on their everyday life (generally, literacy also encompasses “numeracy”: the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations). | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | National population census, household surveys, labour force surveys
Secondary indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Educational attainment | Percentage distribution of youth aged 25-29 according to the highest level of education attained or completed, with reference to International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) classification (e.g. no schooling, primary, secondary, tertiary) | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database (available for the population over age 25) | DHS, UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster surveys, population census, household surveys, labour force surveys
Gross enrolment ratio in tertiary education | Number of students enrolled in tertiary education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the official school-age population corresponding to tertiary education (five-year age group, starting from the official secondary school graduation age). | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | School register, school survey or census for data on enrolment by level of education; population census or estimates for school-age population
Proficiency in reading, mathematics and science | PISA performance scores in reading, mathematics and science among students age 15. | OECD – PISA surveys | OECD PISA surveys, other international surveys: Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, Programme on the Analysis of Education Systems, Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality, Latin American Laboratory for Assessment of the Quality of Education
Satisfaction with the educational system | Percentage of youth aged 15-24 who are dissatisfied with the educational system or the schools in the city/area where they live. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys, World Values Survey (WVS) wave 6: Percentage of youth age 29 and under who think that the formal education system in their country does not provide people with skills/training to i) find employment; ii) perform their jobs well; or iii) start a business
Social and emotional skills: ability to pursue goals, work with others and manage emotions | Abilities to pursue goals (perseverance, self-control, passion for goals), work with others (sociability, respect, caring) and manage emotions (self-esteem, optimism, confidence). |  | Young Lives, OECD Longitudinal Study of Children’s Social and Emotional Skills in Cities (launch expected after 2020)
School life expectancy | Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education (secondary and tertiary). | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database | School register, school survey or census for data on enrolment by level of education; population census or estimates for school-age population
Mean years of schooling | Average number of completed years of education among youth aged 15-24, excluding years spent repeating individual grades. | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database (available for the population age 25 and over) | National population census, household and/or labour force surveys

Table 3.A1.3. Youth employment
Main indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
NEET rate | Share of youth aged 15-29 not in education, employment or training. NEET includes inactive and unemployed non-students. | ILO/Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) YouthSTATS, ILO YouthSTATS | School-to-work transition survey (SWTS), labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module
Employment status | Distribution of workers aged 15-29 by employment status: i) employees; ii) employers; iii) own-account workers; iv) members of producer co-operatives; and v) contributing family workers. | ILO/UCW YouthSTATS, ILO YouthSTATS | SWTS, labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module

Informal employment rate

Share of workers aged 15-29 who are in informal employment.

Informal employment: Jobs in the formal sector, informal sector or households, which lack basic social or legal protections or employment benefits. For operational reasons, the concept is measured as the number of persons employed in informal employment in their main job.

ILO/UCW YouthSTATS

SWTS, labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module

Secondary indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Share of inactive non-students | Share of youth aged 15-29 neither in the labour force nor in education or training (different from NEET in that it captures only economically inactive non-students, i.e. those that are not actively seeking jobs). | ILO/UCW YouthSTATS, ILO YouthSTATS | SWTS, labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module
Share of unemployed non-students | Share of youth aged 15-29 unemployed and not in education or training (different from NEET in that it captures only unemployed non-students, i.e. those actively seeking jobs). | ILO/UCW YouthSTATS, ILO YouthSTATS. | SWTS, labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module
Vulnerable employment rate | Share of workers aged 15-29 who are either own-account or contributing family workers. | ILO/UCW YouthSTATS, ILO YouthSTATS | SWTS, labour force survey; population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module
Poorly paid | Share of own-account workers and paid employees aged 15-29 with below-average wages or income. | Available in ILO publications (Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013: A generation at risk) | SWTS, labour force survey with earnings module, establishment survey on employment and earnings
Time-related underemployment rate | Employed youth aged 15-29 who are willing and available to increase their working time and worked fewer hours than a specified time threshold during the reference period (usually 40 hours per week). | ILO/UCW YouthSTATS | SWTS, labour force survey, household survey with an employment module, administrative records

Qualifications mismatch

Skills mismatch between the job that a worker aged 15-29 does and their level of educational qualification, measured by applying the normative measure of occupational skills categories from the International Standard Classification of Occupations.

Undereducated/well-matched/overeducated: Young workers in a particular group who have a lower/the assigned/higher level of education.

Available in ILO publications (Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013: A Generation at Risk, Work for Youth [W4Y] project)

SWTS, labour force survey, household survey with an employment module, establishment survey

Job satisfaction | Share of workers aged 15-29 who are satisfied (reported being very satisfied or somewhat satisfied in the SWTS) with their jobs. | Available in ILO publications (Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013: A Generation at Risk, W4Y project) | SWTS; labour force survey and other household surveys with an employment module that includes information on job satisfaction

Distribution of youth aged 15-29 by stage of school-to-labour market transition

Transitioned: Youth currently employed in i) a stable job, whether satisfactory or non-satisfactory; OR ii) a satisfactory but temporary job; OR iii) satisfactory self-employment.

In transition: Youth i) currently unemployed (relaxed definition); OR ii) employed in a temporary and non-satisfactory job; OR iii) in non-satisfactory self-employment; OR iv) inactive and not in education or training, with intention of looking for work later.

Transition not yet started: Youth i) still in school and inactive (inactive student); OR ii) inactive and not in education or training (inactive non-student), with no intention of looking for work.

Negative outcomes: Youth in transition AND transition not yet started (inactive non-students with no intention of looking for work.

Available in ILO publications (Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013: A Generation at Risk, W4Y project)

SWTS; labour force survey and other household surveys with an employment module that includes information on job satisfaction

Table 3.A1.4. Youth civic participation and empowerment
Main indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Interpersonal trust | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who declared trusting people. | WVS – Online Data Analysis | WVS wave 6
Institutional trust | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who declared being confident in institutions, such as national government, civil services, police, military, judiciary system or media. | Gallup World Poll data, WVS – Online Data Analysis | World Poll surveys, WVS wave 6
Secondary indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Rate of civic engagement | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who, in the past month, have volunteered their time to an organisation, donated money to a charity, or helped a stranger or someone they did not know who needed help. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys
Rate of social network support | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who declared that they have relatives or friends they can count on to help them if they were in trouble/in case of need. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys
Voicing opinions | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who have voiced their opinion to a public official in the past month. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys
Voting rate | Percentage of youth age 29 and under who declared that they usually or always vote when elections take place (local or national). | WVS – Online Data Analysis | WVS wave 6
Rate of juveniles brought into formal contact with the police and/or criminal justice system | Number of juveniles age 17 and under suspected, arrested or cautioned (all crimes) per 100 000 juveniles. | UNODC – Statistics on criminal justice | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature
Rate of juveniles detained | Number of juveniles age 17 and under held in prisons, penal institutions or correctional institutions per 100 000 juveniles. | UNODC – Statistics on criminal justice | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature
Homicide rate | Number of victims aged 15-29 of intentional homicide (unlawful death purposefully inflicted on a person by another person) per 100 000 youth. | UNODC – Homicide statistics | United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (UN-CTS)
Victims of assault | Number of victims aged 15-29 of assault (physical attack against the body of another person resulting in serious bodily injury, excluding indecent/sexual assault, threats, slapping/punching and assault leading to death) per 100 000 youth. | UNODC – Statistics on crime (only available for the total population); WHO – Global school-based student health surveys (GSHS) | UN-CTS; GSHS: Percentage of youth aged 13-17 years who have been physically attacked at least once in the past 12 months
Gender-based domestic violence in the lifetime | Percentage of women aged 15-29 who have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner at some time in their lives. | OECD Social Institution and Genders Index | DHS, International Violence Against Women Survey

Table 3.A1.5. Youth life evaluation, feelings and meaning
Main indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Dissatisfaction with life | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who are currently dissatisfied with their lives as a whole: youth who reported less than 5 on a scale from 1 (completely dissatisfied) to 10 (completely satisfied). | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys
Negative feelings | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who experienced at least one of the following feelings during most of the day before the interview: anger, depression, sadness, stress or worry. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys
Secondary indicators | Definition | International databases | Raw data sources
Low sense of purpose in life | Percentage of youth aged 15-29 who feel that their lives do not have an important purpose. | Gallup World Poll data | World Poll surveys

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Chapter 4.

Establishing a profile of disadvantaged youth (Module 2)

Having defined dimensions of youth well-being and identified indicators, it is then important to be able to identify disadvantaged youth – those at risk for experiencing or those already experiencing well-being deficits. One way to construct a profile of disadvantaged youth is to look at the potential causes and drivers of youth well-being deficits, and then to conduct descriptive and regression analyses to determine whether and to what extent those factors are actually correlated with deficits in youth well-being. This section explains different methods to understand causal linkages.

Potential drivers of deficits in youth well-being

Many factors can lead to youth well-being deprivation. Country-level descriptive and regression data analysis can consider three distinct kinds of risk factor: i) individual characteristics and behaviours; ii) family or household characteristics; and iii) community characteristics (see Figure 1.1 and Table 4.6 at the end of the Module for some examples). Other factors, such as policies and macroeconomic conditions, can also have an impact on youth well-being, but assessing their contribution requires other tools. They are thus considered in Module 3.

Individual characteristics and behaviours

The interplay between youth environments and inherent attributes, such as biological conditions (age, gender, ethnicity and race, among others), can be a strong determinant of youth well-being. Other individual characteristics, especially those related to health conditions, such as physical disability, mental health disorders and poor nutrition, are highly detrimental to youth well-being and can seriously affect future outcomes.

Age. Adolescents and young adults face different challenges. Adolescents may engage in a number of risky behaviours, including early sexual initiation, unprotected sex and lack of contraceptive use, which can translate into immediate negative outcomes, such as adolescent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Adolescence is also an age when individuals are easily influenced by peers and may adopt criminal and violent behaviours that put them at risk for arrest and incarceration. In addition, those who leave school early have lower chances of successfully transitioning to the labour market and accessing decent work. Older youth confront additional challenges, especially drug and alcohol addiction due to substance abuse, as well as idleness (neither studying nor working) and informal employment.

Gender. Girls tend to have less access to education than boys, especially at the secondary and tertiary levels. The situation is more mixed regarding learning achievements. Girls generally out-perform boys in reading, while the reverse is true in mathematics (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO], 2012). Young women usually face greater difficulties completing the school-to-work transition and securing stable jobs than young men, and they more often end up in unemployment or being inactive without studying (Elder and Koné, 2014; International Labour Organisation [ILO], 2013a; Rosati, Ranzani and Manacorda (2015). Globally, young women are less affected by mortality and morbidity than young men but are disadvantaged in many other respects. Maternal conditions, for instance, are one of the leading causes of death among adolescent girls (World Health Organization [WHO], 2014).

Ethnicity. Young people from ethnic minorities are generally less likely to be enrolled in, attend and complete education. They are more likely to drop out of school and tend to have lower academic performance. They usually start the school-to-work transition earlier but have more difficulties completing the transition and securing stable jobs. Ethnic minority youth are, in addition, more exposed to violence and social marginalisation.

Health conditions and disability. Bad health conditions constitute a major obstacle to youth well-being. Physical disability is not only a negative outcome per se, but an important risk factor for other dimensions of well-being. Physical disability clearly limits youth access to education and employment and pushes many of them towards idleness. Mental health problems are also often associated with school drop-out, grade repetition and poor academic performance, as well as with risky behaviours, such as unprotected sex. Youth with mental health disorders have more difficulties developing their cognitive and non-cognitive skills and are more likely to attempt suicide. Poor nutrition, especially in the early years and in the transition from childhood to adulthood, significantly damages physical and psychical development and brings with it numerous health risks, including underweight, iron-deficiency anaemia, chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes, cancer) and premature death.

Aside from personal attributes, youth well-being is also highly dependent on an individual’s behaviours, in particular those related to sexual and reproductive health (SRH), substance abuse, education and employment, and crime and violence.

SRH. Early sexual activity and unprotected sex can give rise to several negative outcomes, including STIs, unintended pregnancy, early childbearing, unsafe abortion and maternal death. Pregnancy during adolescence carries a number of risks for both the mother and the child. For the mother, health problems that can arise due to early pregnancy range from anaemia, malaria, HIV and other STIs to postpartum haemorrhage and mental disorders, such as depression. For the child, the risks are mainly stillbirth and death, pre-term birth, low birth weight and asphyxia, in particular when pregnant adolescents use tobacco and alcohol. Adolescent mothers are time constrained as a result of their family responsibilities. This is particularly true when they raise their children alone, a situation more common among adolescents than older women. As a consequence, adolescent mothers are likely to drop out of school or have low academic performance and a posteriori become inactive or enter the labour market to occupy flexible but less rewarding jobs in the informal sector or as self-employed.

Substance abuse. Tobacco, alcohol and illicit drug use undermine both current and future health, as well as other dimensions of youth well-being. Substance users can quickly become addicted and face numerous problems, from cognitive and educational difficulties, including poor academic performance, school absenteeism and early drop-out to low self-esteem and mental disorders, which may lead to suicide attempts. These individuals are often exposed to other risky behaviours and negative outcomes, such as malnutrition, unprotected sex, STIs, and violence and injuries (both as victims and perpetrators). They have, in addition, a lower life expectancy, since they are more predisposed in adulthood to non-communicable diseases and premature death.

Disengagement from school and child labour. Disengagement from school ranges from school absenteeism, poor academic performance and grade repetition to school drop-out. Youth who leave school early have lower human capital endowments and reduced employment opportunities, and may fall into inactivity or get into low-quality and unproductive jobs offering poor earnings. Disengagement can also lead to social marginalisation and exclusion. Out-of-school youth are less connected to society and less civically engaged and are more likely to experience other risky behaviours and negative outcomes, such as delinquency, crime and violence, early sexual initiation, risky sex and adolescent pregnancy, and substance abuse and other unhealthy practices. Some children or youth work while in school or simply drop out to work. Child labour or premature entry into the labour market – in particular, hazardous employment and the worst forms of child labour – can affect health and personal development, as well as future prospects of decent work. Idleness, defined as being neither studying nor working, is also a major concern among youth, potentially resulting in social isolation and triggering other risky behaviours that can further reduce their well-being (European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions [Eurofound], 2012).

Crime and violence. As observed, criminal and violent behaviours are often associated with other risky behaviours and negative outcomes, such as disengagement from school, idleness, substance abuse and unprotected sex. For perpetrators, it can ultimately lead to arrest, incarceration and loss of liberty. Violence and crime can take many forms, including physical fighting, bullying, intimate partner violence, non-fatal assault and homicide. Youth exposed to violence can suffer injuries, disability or even death, in the worst cases. Being the victim of violence constitutes a traumatic experience that can also result in mental disorders, cognitive and educational problems and behavioural changes, such as substance abuse, depression and suicide.

Family characteristics

Beyond personal attributes and behaviours, the family environments in which youth live have an impact on their well-being. Among other factors, household income poverty, low parental education and poor employment situation, lack of parental support, as well as domestic abuse and violence negatively influence youth well-being. Once they have left their parents, for instance to form their own families, youth may be confronted with other family-related issues, such as single parenthood or intimate partner violence.

Poverty. Poverty is a major constraint to youth development and well-being. Youth living in poor households are materially deprived; suffer from poor nutrition and housing conditions, with immediate and future negative consequences to their health; and are socially excluded. They have less access to education and tend to make the transition to the labour market earlier, although they often end up in unemployment or informal employment. Poor youth are more likely than others to be exposed to violence, either as perpetrators or victims, and to adopt risky behaviours, such as disengagement from school, substance abuse, early sexual initiation and unprotected sex. Child labour is also a common phenomenon among poor households due to the need for additional household income and the high opportunity cost of education. Low parental education and an adverse employment situation are usually correlated with household poverty (especially when labour income constitutes the main source of livelihood) and have similar detrimental effects on youth well-being.

Parental behaviours. Youth well-being is strongly influenced by the way parents behave and treat them. For instance, youth who lack parental support and connectedness or who suffer from domestic abuse and violence are more likely to drop out school, enter the labour market prematurely and develop harmful behaviours, such as early sexual initiation, unprotected sex, substance abuse and violence. They are also more likely to develop negative feelings, as well as mental health and cognitive problems.

Community characteristics

Characteristics of the community where youth live also exert an influence on their behaviours and well-being. These include, in particular, the area of residence (urban or rural), access to and quality of schools, community violence, negative peer influences, availability of adequate infrastructure and public services, as well as social and cultural norms (Table 4.1).

Table 4.1. Examples of inherent and environmental risk factors to youth well-being

Individual | Family/Household | Community

Inherent characteristics

Age

Gender

Ethnicity/race

Migration

Disability

Mental health/low self-esteem

Poor nutrition

Risky behaviours

SRH: early sexual initiation, risky sex, adolescent pregnancy

Substance use: tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs

Disengagement from school: school absenteeism, grade repetition, drop-out, poor academic performance

Employment: Idleness (NEET), child labour

Crime and violence: Violent/criminal behaviours, belonging to a violent/criminal group

Poverty/scarcity

Poor household amenities

Parental education

Single parenthood

Early parenthood

Lack of parental support

Lack of parental control

Domestic abuse/violence

Location: urban/rural, administrative area (district, province or region)

Access/quality of schools

Unsafe/poor neighbourhoods

Negative peer influences

Infrastructure and public services (health, SRH, information and communication technologies)

Social and cultural norms (gender, early marriage)

Box 4.1. Main risk factors to be taken into account in bivariate and multivariate analysis

Youth well-being is affected by a multitude of risk factors at micro, meso and macro levels. Not all of them can be taken into account in bivariate and multivariate analysis, either because they require other analytical tools (this is typically the case when a factor is invariant across individuals) or because they are not well measured in the data set used for the analysis.

The literature has nonetheless identified a certain number of risk factors that recurrently affect multiple dimensions of youth well-being and are more commonly available in existing datasets. Depending on their availability, the analysis of youth well-being should be conducted taking into account at least this minimal list of risk factors:

Individual characteristics: age, gender, ethnicity or race, level of education, health status or disability, marital status

Household characteristics: poverty/scarcity, parental education, family structure (living with parents or not, presence of children)

Community characteristics: urban (ideally capital city and other urban) and rural area of residence, region of residence.

Categories of youth most affected by well-being deficits

Descriptive statistics are the initial step of any data analysis. They can offer a first insight into who the disadvantaged youth are, based on the above individual, household and community characteristics. With descriptive statistics, it is possible to perform bivariate analysis, which allows describing the relationship between pairs of variables, such as dependent variables (well-being deficits) and independent variables (risk factors). Bivariate descriptive analysis does not permit deriving casual inference but rather determining if and to what extent two different variables are interrelated. Descriptive statistics in the case of bivariate analysis mainly include cross-tabulations, graphical representations and quantitative measures of dependence, such as correlations.

Cross-tabulations

Cross-tabulations provide a basic picture of the relation between risk factors and well-being deficits. It basically displays the outcome of the dependent variable (well-being deficit) disaggregated for different subgroups as defined by the independent variable (risk factor). Usually, the dependent variable is displayed in columns and the risk factors in rows. From cross-tabulations, most at-risk youth can be approximated by identifying the risk factors associated with the highest outcomes of the well-being deficits.

Graphical representations

Two-way graphs are often preferred to, or analysed in conjunction with, cross-tabulations because they offer a better visualisation of the relationship between two variables. Different types of graphs exist. Histograms are used when the independent variable (risk factor) is a categorical variable, which is the case in most of the risk factors identified in this methodology. The magnitude of the well-being deficit is represented by a bar for the different subgroups considered. Most at-risk youth are therefore easily identifiable.

Correlations

Tables and graphs provide a good illustration of youth most affected by well-being deficits. However, these descriptive statistics should be complemented by more robust measures that quantify and test the level of association between risk factors and well-being deficits.

Two measures of association are commonly used in the literature: the Sperman’s rank and the Pearson’s correlation coefficients. These correlation coefficients are indexes of the strength of association between two variables, which can range from 0 (no association) to 1 (perfect association). The sign of coefficients indicates the sense of the correlation. A positive sign means that the two variables are positively correlated; a negative sign means that they are negatively correlated. The value of coefficients indicates, in turn, the magnitude or strength of the correlation between the two variables. Once the correlation coefficient is obtained, it is recommended to test the statistical significance of the correlation. This can be done by using, for instance, the chi square statistic. If the correlation coefficients are statistically significant at a reasonable confidence level (95% or 99%), it is possible to conclude that the two variables are correlated.

These measures of association can be used to identify which of the risk factors are significantly positively correlated with well-being deficits and, in particular, which of the risk factors exhibit the stronger correlations. These results give us first insights into which youth are most at risk for experiencing well-being deficits.

Determinants of youth well-being deficits

While bivariate descriptive tools can give a gross approximation of the correlation between risk factors and well-being deficits, they need to be complemented with multivariate regression analysis. Multivariate analysis is commonly used to identify the determinants of youth disadvantage, as it provides more accurate measures of the correlation between risk factors and well-being deficits by taking into account multiple factors simultaneously and isolating the effect of each of them while controlling for the others.

The multivariate regression analysis can be conducted following five sequential steps:

Select the data.

Define the dependent variable (well-being deficit indicator).

Determine the most appropriate model to estimate the dependent variable.

Specify the independent variables (risk factors) to be included in the model.

Identify the determinants of the well-being deficit by testing the statistical significance of the risk factors and quantifying their effects on the well-being deficit.

The rest of this section describes these steps in more details and then provides a few examples of simple regression analysis that can be conducted using a variety of available data sets to identify the determinants of youth well-being deficits in the areas of i) employment; ii) education and skills; iii) health; and iv) participation and empowerment.

While the examples have the advantage of relying on a rather simple methodology, they have some limitations. First, results obtained from regression analysis are highly dependent on both the type of model used and how it is specified (the explanatory variables selected). In other words, regression analysis does not allow knowing with certainty if and to what extent the risk factors considered really affect well-being but rather gives an indication of the potential determinants and their approximate effects. Second, simple regression models, such as those proposed below, do not permit establishing causal relationships between risk factors and well-being deficits. This can be done using more complex econometric techniques, such as treatment effects models. Third, with simple regression models, it is also not possible to deal with potential issues that can bias the results, such as endogeneity (when explanatory variables are correlated with the error term) and multi-collinearity (when two or more explanatory variables are correlated). These potential problems can be overcome by using more sophisticated methods, including the instrumental variable approach, that are beyond the scope of this toolkit.

Multivariate regression analysis

Step 1. Select the data

Employment. Information on employment can be found in labour force surveys or in other household surveys with an employment module. When analysing the school-to-work transition, panel data should be preferred, since they follow individuals over multiple time periods. In the absence of panel data, cross-section data with retrospective information on labour market history could be used, such as the ILO school-to-work transition surveys (SWTSs), which have been widely applied to analyse this phenomenon.

Education and skills. Population censuses and household surveys, including labour force surveys, are generally used to analyse education and skills. Learning achievements and cognitive skills in particular can be analysed through a number of international surveys, including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Young Lives longitudinal study of child poverty.

Health. Health and SRH in particular are best analysed using population censuses and household surveys, such as the demographic and health surveys (DHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-assisted reproductive health surveys. Information on substance use can be found in specialised surveys, including the following two WHO-supported school-based surveys: the Global school-based student health surveys (GSHS) and the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children surveys (HBSC).

Box 4.2. Which type of data to use?

Household surveys constitute the main and richest source of information to measure deficits in youth well-being and analyse their determinants at the individual, family and community levels. Data from household surveys can broadly be classified into three different types: panel data, cross-section data with retrospective information, and cross-section data without retrospective information.

Panel data. Also known as longitudinal data, panel data are the best data to use in that they offer the highest possibilities in terms of analysis. In panel surveys, the same individuals are followed over multiple time periods, making possible a dynamic analysis of well-being over the youth life phase. In particular, panel data allow investigating the impacts of prior deficits and risk factors on youth well-being and their evolution over time. Panel surveys are more costly and difficult to implement than others surveys. For these reasons, panel surveys are usually scarce in developing countries.

Cross-section data with retrospective information. In the absence of panel data, a quasi-dynamic analysis is still possible with cross-section data containing retrospective information. Cross-section surveys differ from panel surveys in that individuals are only observed at a specific point in time. If multiple cross-sections exist, the investigation can be conducted for different points in time, but the individuals analysed will not be the same. A good example is the SWTS, which contains comprehensive information on the past situation and characteristics of surveyed individuals, with a focus on youth labour market history.

Cross-section data without retrospective information. Usually, cross-section surveys focus on the current situation of individuals and include very limited information on prior situation and characteristics. Conducting rigorous and detailed investigation on youth well-being is still possible with such surveys, but the analysis will be static and will not follow a life cycle approach.

Participation and empowerment. Data on social capital and civic and political engagement can be obtained from international surveys, such as the Gallup World Poll surveys and the World Values Surveys. Similar opinion polls conducted at the regional level, including Afrobarometer, Latinobarometer and Asianbarometer, constitute rich sources of information and hence must be exploited to document issues related to youth participation and empowerment. With regard to youth violence, cross-national information is difficult to retrieve, as it is for other risky behaviours, since it is only available in a few specialised international surveys covering a limited number of countries, such as the GSHS and HBSC surveys.

Step 2. Define the dependent variable

The dependent variables used are qualitative variables that take two or more values. In the case of a binary qualitative variable, the dependent variable takes value 1 for youth experiencing the well-being deficit and 0 for youth not affected by the well-being deficit. This coding is used to distinguish the outcome of interest (experiencing the well-being deficit), which is coded 1, from the reference or base outcome (not being affected by the well-being deficit), which is coded 0.

In the case of a qualitative variable with multiple categories, the dependent variable takes several values corresponding to different well-being outcomes. The dependent variable is not ordinal because well-being outcomes cannot be ranked from worst to best in an unquestionable way. However, some well-being outcomes are clearly more favourable than others. The outcome assumed to be the most favourable is considered the reference category and coded 0 accordingly. The way the other outcomes are ordered does not matter, since they are all analysed separately in comparison to the reference category.

Step 3. Select an appropriate estimation model

In the case of a binary qualitative dependent variable, models that can be used include linear and non-linear probability models, such as the logit and probit regression. These models allow deriving the partial effect of the independent variables – i.e. the effect of each independent variable, holding all the others fixed – on the probability that the outcome of interest has occurred.

Of the two, non-probability models are more popular in the empirical literature. The linear probability model, which is estimated using ordinary least square regression, is less adapted when dealing with a binary dependent variable because its predicted values can fall outside the unit interval (be negative or exceed 1) for some values of the explanatory variables. This is actually not very problematic if partial effects are estimated at the mean of the independent variables or if most independent variables are discrete and contain only a few values, such as dummies (Wooldridge, 2002).

Logit and probit models are basically the same: the dependent variable is generally modelled using a cumulative distribution function, and the coefficients are estimated by maximum likelihood. They only differ in that the error term does not have the same distribution (standard logistic in the logit model versus standard normal in the probit model). Both models can be used equally to analyse the determinants of a particular well-being deficit. When the dependent variable is qualitative and has more than two categories, multinomial non-linear probability models, such as the multinomial logit regression, are the most appropriate.

Step 4. Specify the independent variables of the model

Independent variables can be either continuous or categorical. The effect of a continuous independent variable on the dependent variable is not necessarily linear. This is the case, for example, for the variable ‘age’. When the relationship between the two variables is suspected to be non-linear, it is preferable to add in the model the square of the independent variable to evidence whether its effect decreases, remains constant or increases as the variable reaches higher values. The squared variable should be divided over a certain factor (for example, 100 in the case of age) so as to offset any effect of scale.

For interpretational purposes, categorical variables, such as sex and levels of education, must be introduced as dummies in the model (dichotomous variables coded 0/1). When the categorical variable has more than two categories, as is the case for levels of education, one of the categories must be left out to serve as the reference category to which the other categories are compared.

Step 5. Identify the determinants of the well-being deficit

Run the model and display the results. To identify the determinants of the well-being deficit, test the statistical significance of the coefficients of the independent variables and look at their sign. Wald tests can be performed to determine if each coefficient is statistically different from zero. If the results of the Wald tests show that coefficients are statistically significant at a reasonably confidence level (95% or 99%), then we can assume that the corresponding independent variables have an effect on the well-being deficit.

Focus only on independent variables with statistically significant coefficients and look at their sign. If the sign is positive, it means that the independent variable increases the likelihood of experiencing the well-being deficit. In that case, the independent variable can be considered a risk factor. Conversely, if the sign is negative, the likelihood is reduced, and the independent variable is assumed to be a protective factor. From the above, disadvantaged youth can be defined as all youth exhibiting risk factors, i.e. with characteristics that make them more likely to experience the well-being deficit.

In logit and probit models, as well as in other non-linear probability models, such as the multinomial logit, the value of coefficients is not meaningful. It is therefore necessary to compute partial or marginal effects to quantify the effects of risk factors on the well-being deficit. The marginal effect is computed separately for each independent variable and corresponds to the change in the probability of experiencing the well-being deficit induced by a marginal change in the independent variable.

The interpretation of the marginal effect differs depending on the nature of the independent variable. If the independent variable is a dummy, like gender (takes value 1 for female and 0 for male), then the marginal effect corresponds to the change in probability when the independent variable changes from 0 to 1. For example, in the case of gender, the marginal effect is the probability of experiencing the well-being deficit when the young individual is female as compared to male. If the independent variable is instead discrete with more than two values, like age, the marginal effect is then interpreted as the change in probability following a one-unit change in the independent variable, which, in the case of age, corresponds to the situation of being one year older. Lastly, when the independent variable is continuous (takes any value within a specified range), the marginal effect is defined as the change in probability of experiencing the well-being deficit induced by an infinitesimal change of the independent variable (1% change in practice).

Determinants of youth well-being deficits in employment

The analysis of the determinants of youth employment outcomes is illustrated in Table 4.2 through two examples: i) the transition from school to work; and ii) informality. Two different models are considered to identify the determinants of the school-to-work transition: one that analyses the factors behind incomplete school-to-work transition and another that looks at the different trajectories that youth can follow in the transition from school to work, in particular the situation of youth who become NEET. A third model is then described to analyse the determinants of informal employment among youth.

Table 4.2. Determinants of youth disadvantage: employment
Well-being deficits | Incomplete school-to-work transition | Selection into different school-to-work transition pathways | Informal employment
Type of data needed | SWTSs; labour force surveys or other household surveys with an employment module that includes information on job satisfaction | Panel data containing information on education and employment | Labour force surveys; school-to-work transitions surveys or other household surveys with an employment module that includes sufficient information to characterise formal and informal employment
Estimation model | Logit or probit model | Multinomial logit model | Logit or probit model
Dependent variable | Dummy variable taking value 1 for youth still in transition and 0 for youth having completed the transition | Categorical variable taking value 0 for early workers, 1 for students, 2 for working students, 3 for late workers, 4 for job-seekers and 5 for labour force drop-outs | Dummy variable taking value 1 for informally employed youth and 0 for formally employed youth

Independent variables

Individual characteristics: age, gender, education, migration, disability, employment history

Family characteristics: income poverty, low parental education, household head, family composition (presence of children)

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence

Individual characteristics: age, gender, ethnicity/race, low education level, poor health status or disability, immigration background, marital status

Family characteristics: income poverty; household composition (living with parents, presence of children, other youth or adults other than parents), difficult family environment (e.g. low parental education, bad employment situation, single parenthood)

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence

Individual characteristics: age (and its square, to take into account possible non-linear returns), gender, level of education, disability or health issues, marital status, migratory statuses

Family characteristics: income poverty, parental education.

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence

Model 1: Determinants of incomplete school-to-work transition

In this model, the ILO definition of school-to-work transition stages can be used to differentiate between youth in transition and youth who completed the transition (see, for instance, ILO, 2013a; Elder and Koné, 2014).

Youth in transition are in one of the following situations:

unemployed, according to the relaxed definition (not employed and available but not necessarily looking for work)

employed in a temporary and non-satisfactory job

employed in non-satisfactory self-employment

inactive non-students with future plans to work

Youth having completed the transition are in one of the following situations:

employed in a stable job, whether satisfactory or non-satisfactory

employed in a satisfactory but temporary job

employed in satisfactory self-employment.

Stable employment is defined as including all employees with a contract of employment, either written or oral, of more than 12 months’ duration. Employees with a contract of no more than a year are considered in temporary employment. Satisfactory and non-satisfactory employment are defined based on a subjective question asking workers whether they are satisfied (either very satisfied or somewhat satisfied, in the SWTSs) or not with their current jobs.

Individual, family and community characteristics, such as those reported in Table 4.2, have an impact on school-to-work completion. At the individual level, the model should at least include independent variables for age, gender and level of education attained or completed. Migratory and disability statuses should also be considered, among other relevant individual characteristics. If using SWTSs, some retrospective information on individuals’ labour market history should be added, such as the number of past spells of unemployment, temporary employment or self-employment (Shehu and Nilsson, 2014) or whether youth were working while in school (Rosati, Ranzani and Manacorda, 2015).

At the family level, poverty or scarcity needs to be taken into account whenever possible. This can be done by introducing a dummy variable for poverty status or, alternatively, by introducing several dummies identifying the different quantiles of the household income or consumption expenditure distribution in which youth are located. Parental education can be used as a proxy in the absence of information on household income or consumption expenditure. Other relevant family characteristics include household head status and the presence of children.

At the community level, location variables are important, given the large spatial disparities commonly documented in the literature. Dummies for urban/rural area of residence and regions are recommended in this regard.

Note that the literature proposes other interesting analyses and estimation methods relative to the school-to-work transition that will not be covered here. Rosati, Ranzani and Manacorda analyse simultaneously the probability that youth never transit to employment, either to a first job or to stable employment, and the duration of the transition among those who are expected to transition, using a split population model (2015). Elder and Koné propose, in turn, three different models estimated using the logit regression to analyse the probability of making the transition, transitioning into stable employment versus satisfactory temporary work or self-employment, and making a short transition (2014). Similarly, Shehu and Nilsson estimate three different models using the probit regression to analyse the probability of making the transition, transitioning into satisfactory temporary work or self-employment, and transitioning into stable employment (2014).

These last two models, be it estimated with a logit or probit regression, are good alternatives to the one suggested here. In fact, not all jobs held by youth who completed the school-to-work transition are of equal quality. It could be interesting, then, to run two additional models that distinguish jobs of higher quality from those of lower quality, such as stable employment versus satisfactory temporary work or self-employment. Analysing the length of the school-to-work transition provides further useful information on this phenomenon but has the major drawback of excluding youth who never went to school. In some developing countries, the latter amount, in fact, to a significant share of the total young population.

Model 2: Determinants of selection into different school-to-work transition pathways

This model requires panel data with successive samples or rotation groups in which individuals are observed on a monthly basis for a long period (e.g. 48 months) (OECD, 2013). In the absence of panel data, cross-section data with retrospective information on labour market history (e.g. from SWTSs) could be used.

The sample must be restricted to individuals defined as youth and enrolled in education at the beginning of the observation period. In each month of the observation period, these individuals must be classified into one of the following labour market states: i) in employment; ii) in education; iii) in employment and education; iv) not in employment; and v) inactive NEET.

The dependent variable is a categorical variable which has the following values:

0 – for early workers: find employment relatively soon

1 – for students: remain in education during the observation period

2 – for working students: combine school and work

3 – for late workers: find employment towards the end of the observation period

4 – for job-seekers: enter unemployment

5 – for labour force drop-outs: become inactive NEETs

Each of these categories corresponds to a different school-to-work pathway. The most successful pathway is the one followed by early workers who find employment relatively soon after leaving the educational system. This category is therefore considered the reference category and coded 0 accordingly.

The dependent variable is not ordinal because the different pathways cannot be ranked from worst to best in an unquestionable way. However, some pathways are clearly less favourable than others. This is undoubtedly the case for youth who do not access employment after leaving school and become unemployed (job-seekers) or, worse, inactive (labour force drop-outs). The primary focus of this model will be on these two last categories.

These pathways are defined after conducting a cluster analysis on individual trajectories based on the following two elements: i) their labour market state at the end of the trajectory; and ii) their transition paths (the relative frequency of each labour market state and the number of transitions between different states over the observation period). The cluster analysis is performed using the Ward’s hierarchical agglomeration algorithm (1963).

Some of the factors reported in Table 4.2 could be taken into account, since they are very likely to affect the probability of following a negative school-to-work pathway and in particular becoming unemployed or inactive non-students (OECD, 2013; Eurofound, 2012; Bills et al., 2014). As the analysis is conducted using panel data, it is recommended to add dummies to control for year or month effects. If the data allow it, some macro factors disaggregated at the local level could be added, such as fertility and youth unemployment rate (OECD, 2013).

Model 3: Determinants of informal employment

Youth are considered to be working informally if they belong to one of the following categories:

Formal sector enterprises: contributing family workers and informal employees

Informal sector enterprises: own-account workers, employers, contributing family workers, informal employees and members of producer co-operatives

Households: own-account workers and informal employees.

The informal sector is composed of unregistered businesses with a small number of workers (in practice, the threshold is usually set at five or ten), and informal employees are defined as those without access to at least one of the key employment benefits, such as annual paid leave, paid sick leave or social security contributions.

Factors displayed in Table 4.2 are believed to play a significant role in the probability of falling into informal employment (see, for instance, Shehu and Nilsson, 2014). If using SWTSs or similar surveys, information on labour market history could be added to the model, such as the number and length of past employment spells, as well as the length of the transition from school to the labour market (ibid.).

Determinants of youth well-being deficits in education and skills

Table 4.3 below presents two models to analyse specific deficits in the area of education and skills. The first model aims to determine the drivers of poor learning achievements and provides an example of how one can analyse the risk factors leading to poor learning achievement.¹ Poor learning achievements are measured by negative results in cognitive skills assessments. Three types of cognitive skills are considered: i) literacy (reading and writing); ii) numeracy; and iii) general cognitive skills based on a receptive vocabulary test. The second model focuses on the determinants of school drop-out.

Table 4.3. Determinants of youth disadvantage: education and skills

Well-being deficits | Poor learning achievements | School drop-out

Type of data needed

Surveys that include information on youth learning achievements and cognitive skills, such as PISA, Young Lives longitudinal study of child poverty, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), Program on the Analysis of Education Systems (PASEC), Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ) and Latin American Laboratory for Assessment of the Quality of Education (LLECE)

Household surveys, labour force surveys; information on school drop-out can also be found in national population censuses.

Estimation model | Logit or probit model | Logit or probit model
Dependent variable | Dummy variable taking value 1 for low performers in cognitive skills assessments and 0 for successful performers Three types of cognitive skills considered: i) literacy (reading and writing), ii) numeracy, iii) general cognitive skills based on a receptive vocabulary test | Dummy variable taking value 1 for youth who dropped out of school and 0 for youth who are attending school

Independent variables

Individual characteristics: age, gender, ethnicity or mother tongue, malnutrition, education (school attendance, as well as years or level of education); poor non-cognitive skills, such as low self-esteem; prior cognitive skills (prior learning achievements in literacy, numeracy and general cognitive skills based on tests scores or results)

Family characteristics: income poverty, housing quality, access to services, consumer durables, parental/caregiver education or literacy

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence, access to/quality of schools, social norms

Individual characteristics: age; gender; ethnicity/race; disability and mental health; education (grade repetition, low academic performance); child labour; substance abuse (tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs); early parenthood

Family characteristics: income poverty, parental education and employment situation, lack of parental support, family structure (presence of other children)

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence, access to/quality of schools, social norms

Model 1: Determinants of poor learning achievements

For this model, data from the Young Lives longitudinal study of child poverty can be used. This study covers four countries, namely Ethiopia, India, Peru and Viet Nam. Two age cohorts of children, born in 1994-95 and 2000-01 respectively, are traced in three successive rounds conducted in 2002, 2006-07 and 2009.2

The sample is restricted to the first cohort of the Young Lives study. Children are thus observed at ages 7/8 in 2002, 11/12 in 2006-07 and 14/15 in 2009. Poor learning achievements in literacy, numeracy and general cognitive skills are analysed separately for each of these ages whenever possible. The analysis is performed at different ages in order to determine how differently risk factors – in particular, past conditions and outcomes, such as prior cognitive and non-cognitive skills – can influence poor learning achievements over the childhood phase.

Literacy.

Poor learning achievement in literacy refers to children who cannot read or write, or who can read or write but with difficulties (read only letters or words, or write with difficulties or error). Information on literacy is only available in the first two survey rounds of the Young Lives study. Accordingly, poor learning achievements in literacy can only be analysed at ages 7/8 and 11/12.

Numeracy/mathematics.

As regards numeracy, surveyed children are asked to perform a test whose level of difficulty varies by age. At ages 7/8, the test consists of solving a simple arithmetic calculation. Older children have to perform more complex mathematics tests, consisting of 10 questions at ages 11/12 and 30 questions at ages 14/15. Scores are derived based on the results. Those with scores below the average are considered low performers. Poor learning achievement in numeracy/mathematics concerns those who did not solve the simple calculation in the case of younger children, and the low performers in the mathematics test in the case of older children.

General cognitive skills.

General cognitive skills are assessed through a Peacebody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), a test of receptive vocabulary commonly used to obtain a proxy measure for verbal ability or intelligence, or scholastic aptitude (Rolleston and James, 2011). In this test, a series of pictures are presented to children. Examiners speak a word describing one of the pictures and ask children to point to or say the number of the picture that the word describes. As for numeracy/mathematics, low performers in general cognitive skills are defined as those having a PPVT score below the average. The PPVT is conducted only in the last two survey rounds of the Young Lives study; therefore, this analysis can only be performed for children ages 11/12 and 14/15.

In total, seven models are regressed to analyse the determinants of, respectively, illiteracy at ages 7/8 and 11/12; poor numeracy skills at ages 7/8, 11/12 and 14/15; and poor general cognitive skills at ages 11/12 and 14/15. Table 4.3 presents some of the factors affecting learning achievements (see, for instance, Rolleston and James, 2011). To allow assessment of the impact of past conditions on poor learning achievements, variables for malnutrition, education, low self-esteem and household wealth from previous survey rounds can be also introduced into the models. Malnutrition can be proxied by a dummy variable for underweight (weight-for-age less than -2 standard deviations of the WHO Child Growth Standards median) and low self-esteem by a dummy variable for children who are ashamed of their achievements at school or of their clothes (Rolleston and James, 2011).

In Young Lives, household wealth is a composite indicator based on three sub-indexes relating to housing quality, access to services and consumer durables. The housing quality component includes information on crowding and on the main material of walls, roof and floor. The sub-index on access to services takes into account electricity, safe drinking water, sanitation and adequate fuels for cooking. The consumer durables component contains indicators on whether the household owns a certain number of goods, such as a radio, television, bicycle, motorbike, automobile, landline phone, mobile phone or refrigerator.

Using a similar model including the factors reported above, Rolleston and James find that basic cognitive skills development in early childhood is closely related to household wealth and caregiver literacy at the family level and school attendance at the individual level (2011). In middle childhood, prior cognitive skills performance and schooling appear to play a central role but not household factors. In adolescence, household wealth and caregiver literacy again become important predictors, in addition to prior abilities and education.

Malnutrition in childhood is also consistently associated with reduced cognitive development (Hardgrove et al., 2014). On the other hand, greater parental interest in children’s education tends to increase their cognitive development, which, in turn, reduces the intergenerational transmission of poverty (Blanden, 2006). Other factors are very likely to impact children’s learning achievements, such as health issues and school quality (Aturupane, Glewwe and Wisniewski, 2010), and could be added to the models.

Model 2: Determinants of school drop-out

The analysis of school drop-out must be restricted to youth belonging to the official school-age population. School drop-out refers to youth who are currently out of school but were previously enrolled and left education before completion. If the information available is limited to school attendance at the time of the survey, school drop-out can be proxied by out-of-school youth.

The main risk factors leading to school drop-out are displayed in Table 4.3. Early parenthood, child labour and poverty are likely to be endogenous, i.e. correlated with unobserved factors that also affect the probability of dropping out of school. This can potentially bias the results of the model. A way to deal with this problem is to follow the instrumental variable approach. The literature proposes several instruments for these potential endogenous variables. In Cardoso and Verner, for example, early parenthood is instrumented with the declared ideal age to start sexual activity, child labour with the declared reservation wage, and poverty with self-reported hunger (2006).

It is important to account for child labour when the analysis is performed for developing countries, where child labour is frequent and constitutes one of the main obstacles to education, in particular to children’s persistence in the school system (Guarcello, Lyon and Rosati, 2008). Dropping out of school is also positively associated with early parenthood and poverty (Cardoso and Verner, 2006), as well as with educational factors, such as grade repetition and completion, poor learning achievements and low school quality (Branson, Hofmeyr and Lam, 2013; Hanushek, Lavy and Hitomi, 2006). Poor parental education and occupation, and the presence of siblings, in particular younger ones, are some of the other factors increasing the likelihood of school drop-out (Huisman and Smits, 2014).

Determinants of youth well-being deficits in health

In the health dimension, two models are proposed to analyse the determinants of adolescent pregnancy and substance abuse, respectively (Table 4.4).

Table 4.4. Determinants of youth disadvantage: health
Well-being deficits | Adolescent pregnancy | Substance abuse
Type of data needed | Household surveys, including DHS and CDC-assisted reproductive health surveys, or population censuses | Information on substance use is available mainly in specialised surveys, such as the GSHS and the HBSC survey
Estimation model | Logit or probit model | Logit or probit model
Dependent variable | Dummy variable for adolescent pregnancy or adolescent mothers (adolescent girls being defined as aged 15-19) | Dummy variable for adolescents who are current consumers of substances Two different types of substances considered: alcohol and illicit drugs

Independent variables

Individual characteristics: ethnicity/race, religion, substance abuse (tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs), mental health (depression), early sexual initiation and unprotected sex (condom and contraceptive use)

Family characteristics: Income poverty, low parental education and socioeconomic status, lack of parental support/connectedness, single parenthood, domestic abuse and violence, family structure (presence of older sexually active siblings or pregnant/parenting teenaged sisters)

Community characteristics: unsafe/poor neighbourhoods, negative peer influences (high risk peer associations), social norms (parental and adolescent sexual attitudes and values)

Individual characteristics: age, gender, ethnicity/race, school drop-out, mental health, risky behaviours (criminal/violent behaviours)

Family characteristics: domestic abuse/violence, parental substance abuse, lack of parental support/connectedness, lack of parental control (supervision, monitoring)

Community characteristics: unsafe/poor neighbourhoods; negative peer influences (crime/violence); social norms (social acceptance of drug use)

Model 1: Determinants of adolescent pregnancy

Factors included in Table 4.4 are often found to be positively correlated with adolescent pregnancy or motherhood and could therefore be included in the model. According to the literature, adolescent pregnancy is positively associated with, among other factors, lack of parental support and connectedness, living with a single parent, residing in unsafe neighbourhoods, having older sexually active siblings or other pregnant or parenting teenaged sisters, and sexual abuse (Miller, Benson and Galbraith et al. 2001). Besides lack of parental support/connectedness, lack of parental regulation (supervision and monitoring) and poor parent/teen communication about sexual issues also increase the probability of adolescent pregnancy.

Model 2: Determinants of substance use

In the GSHS, current alcohol consumers are defined as those who consumed one or more alcoholic drinks in the past 30 days and current drug consumers as those who used illicit drugs at least once in the past 30 days. Illicit drugs include marijuana, amphetamines or methamphetamines, cocaine, solvents or inhalants, ecstasy, heroin and other country specific drugs. The GSHS concerns students aged 13-17.

Table 4.4 lists the main risk factors associated with substance abuse. Parental substance abuse in particular can lead to impaired parental control and child maltreatment and, subsequently, the consumption of substances by the child (Singh, Thornton and Tonmyr, 2011). Substance abuse contributes to risks during adolescence for injury, violence, poor cognitive skills development, unprotected sex and suicide attempts. In adulthood, it plays a role in risks for non-communicable diseases and injuries (WHO, 2014).

Determinants of youth well-being deficits in civic participation and empowerment

As regards civic participation and empowerment, the analysis of determinants will focus first on the lack of civic engagement among youth and then on youth violence (Table 4.5).

Table 4.5. Determinants of youth disadvantage: civic participation and empowerment
Well-being deficits | Civic engagement | Youth violence
Type of data needed | Socioeconomic surveys, such as the Gallup World Poll surveys, contain several questions on civic engagement and thus can be used to perform this analysis. | Youth violence can be analysed using international specialised surveys, such as the GSHS, covering adolescents aged 13-17, and the HBSC survey, covering adolescents ages 11, 13 and 15
Estimation model | Logit or probit model | Logit or probit model
Dependent variable | Dummy variable taking value 1 for youth not civically engaged and 0 for youth exhibiting some form of civic engagement | Dummy variable taking value 1 for violent youth and 0 for non-violent youth

Independent variables

Individual characteristics: age, gender, ethnicity/race, migration, education

Family characteristics: income poverty, poor parental education, lack of parental support/connectedness, lack of parental control (supervision, monitoring), parents’ civic and political engagement, single parenthood

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence, unsafe/poor neighbourhoods, low access/quality of schools; low school connectedness, lack of infrastructure and public services, low social capital and social norms (interpersonal trust, social networks/connectedness, community values and attitudes – civic, social, religious)

Individual characteristics: age, gender, race/ethnicity, migration, mental disorders, low cognitive and non-cognitive skills (low self-esteem, emotional distress), education (poor academic performance, school drop-out), risky behaviours (substance abuse)

Family characteristics: income poverty, poor parental education, lack of parental support/connectedness, lack of parental control (supervision, monitoring), domestic abuse and violence, parental behaviours and attitudes (crime/violence, substance use), family structure (single parenthood)

Community characteristics: location, urban/rural area of residence, unsafe/poor neighbourhoods, lack of infrastructure and public services, access to/quality of schools, low school connectedness, negative peer influences (peer delinquency), social capital (interpersonal trust, social networks/connectedness)

Model 1: Determinants of the lack of civic engagement

Civic engagement can be defined using three questions from the Gallup World Poll surveys. Individuals are asked whether, in the past month, they have i) volunteered their time to an organisation; ii) donated money to a charity; or iii) helped a stranger or someone they did not know who needed help. In this model, youth who answered no to all three are considered not civically engaged; those who answered yes to at least one question are considered civically engaged (to some extent).

Table 4.5 presents some factors that could be integrated into the model, since they are very likely to affect youth civic engagement. As regards personal attributes, youth civic engagement can be found deeply rooted in the process of identity formation during adolescence. The psychological literature shows that adolescents who are self-reflective and who actively explore identity alternatives before making decisions about the values, beliefs and goals that they will pursue have more non-cognitive skills and positive personality traits, develop a higher sense of social responsibility and are more engaged in communities (Crocetti, Erentaitė. and Žukauskienė., 2014; Crocetti, Jahromi and Meeus, 2012). This is in contrast to adolescents who more automatically conform to others’ prescriptions and expectations (parents or other reference groups) or who do not deal with identity issues.

At the family level, affluence is shown to be positively related to youth participation in community activities (Lenzi et al., 2012). Empirical studies focussing on the role of parents demonstrate, in addition, that parental civic values and behaviours have an influence on youth civic engagement (Atkins and Hart, 2003). Moreover, lack of parental support and monitoring in childhood is shown to have an adverse impact on future youth civic engagement (ibid.).

Community characteristics also play a significant role in youth civic engagement. For instance, youth are less likely to be civically engaged when living in poor urban neighbourhoods (Atkins and Hart, 2003) or in communities with low levels of social capital (social ties and trust) and school connectedness (Lenzi et al., 2013, 2012).

Model 2: Determinants of youth violence

The last model proposed examines the factors correlated with youth involvement in violence. Using the GSHS, youth can be defined as violent if they reported any of the following behaviours: i) belonged to a violent group (attacks with insults, bullying, hits, assault, robbery, or rape); ii) were repeatedly in a physical fight in the past 12 months; or iii) have carried a weapon (gun, knife, club or other) on several occasions in the past 30 days.

Characteristics displayed in Table 4.5 have been identified by the literature as contributing factors to violent youth behaviours (O’Brien et al., 2013; Burfeind and Batusch, 2016), and hence could be taken into account. Risk for violence among youth tends to increase in particular with mental disorders (e.g. attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms), poor non-cognitive skills (e.g. emotional distress), low school connectedness, poor academic performance and educational aspirations, and high peer delinquency (Bernat et al., 2012). Substance use is another significant risk factor leading to juvenile delinquency (Simoes, Matos and Batista-Foguet, 2008).

Other proximal determinants of youth violence can be found at the family level. For instance, youth living in broken homes and who lack parental support and control are more susceptible to delinquent peer influences, thereby increasing opportunities for involvement in delinquency (Burfeind and Bartusch, 2016; Alboukordi et al., 2012).

Table 4.6. Examples of risk factors to youth well-being at the individual, family and community levels
Individual level
Risk factor | Suggested indicator | Data sources
Age group | Dummy variable for adolescents aged 10-19 or young adults aged 20-29 or continuous variable for age (in quadratic terms) | Household surveys, labour force surveys, etc.
Gender | Dummy variable for being female | Household surveys, labour force surveys, etc.
Ethnicity | Dummy variable for minority status | Household surveys, labour force surveys, etc. (unavailable in some countries)

Disability

Dummy variable for youth aged 15-24 or 29 who have a lot of difficulties or who cannot do at all at least one of the following activities: i) seeing (even if wearing glasses); ii) hearing (even if using a hearing aid); iii) walking/climbing steps; iv) remembering/concentrating; v) self-care; vi) communicating

SWTS, other household surveys with information on disability status

Mental health / low self-esteem | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who have seriously considered attempting suicide in the past 12 months | GSHS
Poor nutrition | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 considered underweight, i.e. body mass index (BMI) less than two standard deviations from the median for the corresponding age and gender. The BMI is calculated by dividing their weight in kg by the square of their height in m. | GSHS
Early sexual activity | Age at first sexual intercourse | GSHS, DHS
Risky sexual behaviour: condom use at the last high-risk sexual intercourse | Dummy variable for young men and women aged 15-24 reporting the use of a condom during sexual intercourse with a non-cohabiting, non-marital sexual partner in the last 12 months | United Nations Millennium Development Goals Indicators (Goal 6, Target 6.A, Indicator 6.2); household surveys (multiple indicator cluster surveys; DHS, etc.); reproductive and health surveys; STEPwise approach to surveillance surveys
Risky sexual behaviour: contraception prevalence among adolescents | Dummy variable for adolescent single or married girls aged 15-19 who are currently using, or whose sexual partner is using, at least one method of contraception, regardless of the method | WHO – Adolescent birth rate: Data by country, household surveys, DHS
Pregnancy | Dummy variable for adolescent girls under age 18 who have given birth or who are currently pregnant | DHS
Tobacco use | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-15 who are current users of any tobacco product (those who consumed any smokeless or smoking tobacco product at least once in the past 30 days) | WHO – Global youth tobacco survey data
Alcohol use | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who had at least one drink containing alcohol in the past 30 days | GSHS
Illicit drug use | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who have used illicit drugs (marijuana, amphetamines or methamphetamines, cocaine, solvents or inhalants, ecstasy, heroin) at least once in the past 30 days | GSHS
School absenteeism | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who missed at least one day of classes or school without permission in the past 30 days | GSHS
Grade repetition | Dummy variable for students enrolled in the same grade as the previous year in i) primary education (all grades); ii) secondary general education (all grades) | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database; school register, school census or surveys for data on repeaters and enrolment by grade
School drop-out | Dummy variable for students who dropped out of i) primary education; ii) lower secondary general education | UNESCO Institute for Statistics database; national population census; household surveys, labour force surveys
Poor academic performance | Continuous variables with performance scores in reading, mathematics and science among students age 15 or dummy variables for low performers | OECD – PISA surveys; other international surveys: TIMSS, PASEC, SCAMEQ, LLECE
Idleness | Dummy variable for youth aged 15-24 or 29 neither in employment nor in education or training | SWTS, labour force surveys, population census and/or other household surveys with an appropriate employment module
Child labour | Dummy variable for i) children aged 10-11 in any type of economic activity; ii) children aged 12-14 in economic activity, excluding light work; iii) children aged 15-17 in hazardous or worst forms of work | ILO child labour surveys, UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, labour force surveys, other household surveys with a child labour module

Violent/criminal behaviours

Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who were in a physical fight (e.g. one or more person(s) hit or struck someone, or one or more person(s) hurt someone with a weapon, such as a stick, knife or gun) at least once in the past 12 months

Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who carried a weapon (e.g. gun, knife, club) at least once in the past 30 days

GSHS

Belonging to a violent/criminal group | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who belong to any violent group (group of people who attack other people or groups with insults, bullying, hits, assault, robbery or rape) | GSHS

Family/Household level
Risk factor | Suggested indicator | Data sources
Lack of parental support | Dummy variable for youth aged 13-17 who reported that their parents never or rarely supported and encouraged them in the past 30 days | GSHS
Domestic abuse/violence | Dummy variable for young women aged 15-24 or 29 who have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or family member ever or in the past 12 months | DHS

Community level
Risk factor | Suggested indicator | Data sources
Violent neighbourhoods | Homicide and assault rates at sub-national levels (available in some countries) | United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) – Homicide statistics; UNODC – Statistics on crime (only available for the total population); United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems
Unsafe neighbourhoods | Percentage of people who feel unsafe walking alone at night in their city, area or community | Gallup World Poll surveys
Negative peer influences | Interpersonal trust Dummy variable for youth (up to 29) who believe that they need to be very careful in dealing with people. Dummy variable for youth (up to 29) who believe that most people try to take advantage of them if they got a chance (scored less than 5 on a 1 to 10 scale). | World Values Survey – Online Data Analysis (WVS wave 6)

References

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Atkins, R. and D. Hart (2003), “Neighborhoods, Adults, and the Development of Civic Identity in Urban Youth”, Applied Developmental Science, Vol. 7/3, Taylor & Francis, Abingdon, pp. 156-164.

Aturupane, H., P. Glewwe and S. Wisniewski (2013), “The Impact of School Quality, Socioeconomic Factors, and Child Health on Students’ Academic Performance: Evidence from Sri Lankan Primary Schools”, Education Economics, Vol. 21/1, Taylor & Francis, Abingdon, pp. 2-37.

Bernat, D.H. et al. (2012), “Risk and Direct Protective Factors for Youth Violence: Results from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health”, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Vol. 43/2, Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American College of Preventive Medicine and the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research, Washington, DC, pp. S57-S66.

Bills, D.B. et al. (2015),“Gender, Regional Socioeconomic Development, and the School to Work Transition of Young Brazilians”, conference paper, International Labour Organization Work4Youth Global Research Symposium, Geneva, 3-4 March 2015.

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Branson, N., C. Hofmeyr and D. Lam (2014), “Progress Through School and the Determinants of School Dropout in South Africa”, Development Southern Africa, Vol. 31/1, Taylor & Francis, Abingdon, pp. 106-126.

Burfeind, J.W. and D.J. Bartusch (2016), Juvenile Delinquency: An Integrated Approach, Routledge, Abingdon.

Cardoso, A.R. and D. Verner (2006), “School Drop-out and Push-out Factors in Brazil: The Role of Early Parenthood, Child Labor, and Poverty”, World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, No. 4178, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Crocetti, E, R. Erentaitė. and R. Žukauskienė. (2014), “Identity Styles, Positive Youth Development, and Civic Engagement in Adolescence”, Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Vol. 43/11, Springer Publishing, New York, pp. 1818 1828.

Crocetti, E., P. Jahromi and W. Meeus (2012), “Identity and Civic Engagement in Adolescence”, Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 35/3, Elsevier Ltd., Amsterdam, pp. 521-532.

Elder, S. and K.S. Koné (2014), Labour Market Transitions of Young Women and Men in Sub-Saharan Africa, Work4Youth Publication Series, No. 9, International Labour Organization, Geneva.

Eurofound (2012), NEETs – Young People not in Employment, Education or Training: Characteristics, Costs and Policy Responses in Europe, European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, Publications Office of the European Union, Brussels.

Guarcello, L., S. Lyon and F.C. Rosati (2008), “Child Labour and Education for All: An Issue Paper”, Understanding Children’s Work Project Working Paper Series, Rome.

Hanushek, E.A., W. Lavy and K. Hitomi (2006), “Do Students Care about School Quality? Determinants of Dropout Behavior in Developing Countries”, National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper, No. w12737, Journal of Human Capital, Vol. 2/1, University of Chicago Press, pp. 69-105.

Hardgrove, A. et al. (2014), “Youth Vulnerabilities in Life Course Transitions”, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Occasional Paper, UNDP, New York.

Huisman, J. and J. Smits (2014), “Keeping Children in School: Effects of Household and Context Characteristics on School Dropout in 363 Districts of 30 Developing Countries”, Nijmegen Center for Economics (NiCE) Working Paper, No. 09-105, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

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Lenzi, M. et al. (2013), “Neighborhood Social Connectedness and Adolescent Civic Engagement: An Integrative Model”, Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 34, Elsevier Ltd., Amsterdam, pp. 45-54.

Lenzi, M. et al. (2012), “Family Affluence, School and Neighborhood Contexts and Adolescents’ Civic Engagement: A Cross-National Study”, American Journal of Community Psychology, Vol. 50/1-2, Springer, New York, pp. 197-210.

Miller, B.C., B. Benson and K.A. Galbraith (2001), “Family Relationships and Adolescent Pregnancy Risk: A Research Synthesis”, Developmental Review, Vol. 21/1, Elsevier B.V., Amsterdam, pp. 1-38.

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Wooldridge, J.M. (2002), Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press, Cambridge, MA.

Notes

 1. This model is based on Rolleston and James (2011).

 2. The 2013 survey round is not yet publicly available.

Chapter 5.

Assessing the broader youth environment (Module 3)

Besides personal attributes and circumstances, policies and social norms can have a strong influence on youth outcomes and are an important element of the youth well-being environment. Thus, assessing the broader youth environment and determining how policies and social norms may contribute to enable or disable youth development potential. This section provides some tools for carrying out institutional analysis.

Policy inventory

Undertaking an inventory of existing youth policies and sectoral policies affecting or targeting youth is a first step towards assessing the policy environment. This can be done with a questionnaire or interviews with relevant authorities. A broad conception of youth policy not only includes policies directed specifically at young people but policies within other policy areas that mostly concern or affect young people, such as education.

A policy inventory can be established by sector and nature of programme (preventive or second chance) (Table 5.1). Once an inventory has been conducted, the next step is to compare existing policies with international experience and good practices to identify critical policy gaps, particularly those affecting disadvantaged youth. A package of policy instruments that intervene at critical stages of the life cycle can contribute significantly to reducing the risks of youth becoming disadvantaged later. Much of the evidence on the impact of youth policy comes from evaluations of specific interventions, but important knowledge gaps remain. Part I of this toolkit provides an inventory of programmes dedicated to youth. Policy inventory should include information on policy/programme name, targeted beneficiaries, budget, implementing agency, etc.

Table 5.1. Youth-oriented policy inventory template

Programme/policy name | Description | Eligibility (beneficiaries profiles) | Total number targeted vs. number of actual beneficiaries | Budget (currency) | Source of financing | Responsible ministry or agency | Programme has been evaluated? (Yes/No, if yes provide reference)

Policy co-ordination and implementation

A national youth policy refers to a policy, strategy or law that lays out a comprehensive plan of action across sectors aimed at improving youth well-being. Progress in the formulation of cross-sectoral and integrated national youth policy has been slow, particularly in developing countries, partly because youth policy has traditionally never been high on national agendas. A national youth policy too often stands alone and is not integrated into overall national development plans. Lack of horizontal or vertical co-operation and co-ordination among sectoral actors can and often does distort policy outcomes.

Youth issues cut across a number of sectors, and the challenge is to link government agencies responsible for youth with other ministries, such as education, employment and health. The difficulty of coming up with a coherent and multidisciplinary strategy has been the norm rather than the exception in most countries. Understanding the process by which policies are transformed into outcomes requires an in-depth analysis of the institutional landscape and the co-ordination mechanisms for designing and delivering public services. An institutional and organisational analysis can help to identify the main actors in youth policies and understand their relationships, as well as to assess the internal competencies of respective organisations. The analysis will help to identify bottlenecks in policy co-ordination and implementation.

Institutional analysis

Each society or geographical area has a number of organisations that carry out activities for youth, often independently of each other. An institutional analysis helps to identify who is intervening with which programmes or policies and to understand the policy co-ordination process. The objective is to identify opportunities to strengthen co-operation among actors and improve policy co-ordination and coherence.

Analysing the coherence of policy making, considering the wide impact policies can have, and assessing interests and priorities of domestic constituencies can provide interesting insights into feasibilities of reform, coverage gaps and political economy factors. It can supply information ex ante (in what way competing or contradictory parties and groups are interested in certain outcomes and what factors should be considered in the policy-making stages) or ex post (why an expected outcome of a policy might not have been reached or how the implemented policy influenced other sectors).

The institutional analysis consists of identifying the actors influencing or affected by interventions (youth policies and programmes), such as government agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), target groups and private enterprises. It is important to determine their relations, whether they are binding or non-binding, their respective areas of interventions and influence, and the gaps and overlaps. This exercise allows answering questions, such as which organisations carry out activities related to youth (e.g. in the areas of health, employment, education, civic participation, justice) and what relations exist among these organisations. Factors that can influence the interventions, such as geographical, sociopolitical, cultural and economic, should also be identified. A typical institutional analysis can be conducted in seven steps.

Step 1. Define the scope of analysis (e.g. employment, health, education and/or national youth policy as a whole); and the geographic focus (e.g. national or local).

Step 2. Identify the main actors (e.g. government agencies, NGOs, private sector, target groups).

Step 3. Define the type of relations:

hierarchical – who reports to whom

communication – who communicates with whom

co-operation – who works with whom

operational – who provides inputs to whom

financial – who pays whom.

Step 4. Draw the map indicating the actors and use different types of lines to indicate the different relations.

Step 5. Indicate the frequency or importance of the relations.

Step 6. Indicate the sufficiency and adequacy of the relations.

Step 7. Analyse the institutional map:

Collaboration: Which relations are problematic? Which can be improved? Which deserve less attention? What can be done to strengthen collaboration? Is there a discussion/exchange platform among ministries when designing, implementing and monitoring the policy? How can governance structures co-operate in order to assess, report on and improve policy making and reform?

Co-ordination: How does the horizontal and vertical policy-making process impact inter-ministerial co-ordination and co-operation? Are there certain institutional co-ordination mechanisms in place to assess and monitor the impact of a policy?

Coherence: In what way does the policy reinforce, complement or hinder other policy areas? Do any policies interfere with the policy targets? In what way? What similar policy implementations might have worked in the past and why? Have potential direct or indirect negative effects (economic, environmental and social) on young people and vulnerable youth been considered and mitigated?

Successful policy making and reforms require strong institutions and leadership. The problem of political economy lies at the root of many obstacles to reforming or implementing new policies. The heterogeneity of agents involved in youth policies, the power structure, imperfect information and electoral incentives all contribute to complex policy environments and implementation challenges. Therefore, the policy practices of one country cannot be copied by another without taking into account the context-specific political economy. Two aspects of introducing new policies or reforming must be taken into account: i) designing policies that will enhance aggregate welfare; and ii) devising strategies to prevent opponents (or losers) from the new policy or reform from blocking the process (OECD, 2010).

Box 5.1. Policy reform initial checklist

There is no universal formulae for policy reform success; however, experience by the OECD points to a number of basic questions that policy makers must address when designing both policy reforms and strategies for their adoption and implementation:

Do the authorities have a clear mandate for change?

What more can be done to demonstrate to the public and key stakeholders the need for change and/or the desirability of the proposed solutions?

How strong is the evidence and analysis underlying the arguments for reform?

Are institutions in place that can manage the reform effectively, from design to implementation, or is there a need to create/strengthen such institutions?

Does the reform have clearly identifiable “owners” in terms of both politicians and institutions?

What is the expected timeframe for design, adoption and implementation?

What is the strategy for engaging those threatened by reform? Can they be persuaded to support it? To what extent can/should their objections be overridden? Should they be compensated for their anticipated losses? If so, how and to what extent?

Source: OECD (2010).

Organisational analysis

An organisational analysis looks at the internal operation of an entity, for example the lead government agency responsible for youth. It will assess the internal strengths and weaknesses of the organisation, such as staff competencies, motivation, budget and management structure. Once a lead or several lead agencies have been identified, an analysis of the internal organisation should be carried out.

A Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) analysis is a tool for assessing and communicating the current position of an organisation or a particular reform option in terms of its internal strengths and weakness and the external opportunities and threats it faces. It provides a clear basis on which to develop a picture of the changes needed to build on strengths, minimise weaknesses, take advantage of opportunities and deal with threats.

Step 1. Gather and summarise initial insights from internal interviews and relevant documents. Supplement as needed with insights from surveys of users and other key stakeholders. Organise the insights into Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat.

Step 2. Carry out this process with key partners and stakeholders. Note that many strengths can also be weaknesses when viewed from a different perspective. The same applies to opportunities and threats.

Step 3. Develop strategies on the basis of this analysis.

Box 5.2. SWOT analysis of the General Secretariat of NYDC in Cambodia

Strengths | Opportunities

Strong leadership support from the government (e.g. having the Prime Minister as Chairman of the NYDC)

A strong legal framework

Able to gather support from relevant stakeholders – civil society organisations, youth organisations and international NGOs

Hosted by the General Directorate of Youth within the MoEYS

Nationwide coverage, meaning the NYDC has mandates to establish its networks of councils down to local government levels

Sustainability of the activities (since it is structured with established government officials)

Demographic dividend

Ongoing economic growth

Available news media, including social media (easier access to information and interactive)

Regional connection – able to integrate with ASEAN Youth Work plan, SSEAYP networks, etc.

Numerous existing youth organisations

Weaknesses | Threats

Unclear structure and limited understanding of roles and responsibilities.

Insufficient infrastructure such as office equipment, meeting rooms, website, information database, etc.

Unclear budget framework

Staffed with existing government officials whose workload is already congested

Only a few focal staff will be active

Difficulty to find officials for each needed position; capacity of assigned staff might be limited (e.g. experienced in working with youth)

Resentment of existing staff who are not assigned to the general secretariat (e.g. political appointment of candidates external to the UYFC)

Politically influenced (e.g. connection with the UYFC, SSEAYP and other political youth organisations)

Many existing youth unions (competing mandates, budget)

Lack of youth representation and participation within the NYDC

Stuck to government work environment, which is slow, bureaucratic and hierarchical

Inter-ministerial co-ordination is difficult

Sub-national authority capacity is low

Newly appointed focal points within the ministries think of this as an additional burden

Source: OECD Development Centre (2017), Youth Well-being Review of Cambodia.

Effect of social norms on youth well-being

Social norms are customary practices that govern behaviour or attitudes within a society, community or peer group. They determine standards of acceptable or inappropriate behaviours and co-ordinate actions among members. In general, social norms are largely protective and healthy for societies, but some traditional or cultural practices and attitudes can have negative effects on certain groups. Social norms can have a particularly strong influence on adolescent and youth behaviours as they go through complex life transitions, both physically and emotionally. It is therefore essential to understand how social norms may affect youth well-being in general and specific groups of youth (grouped according to individual attributes, such as age, gender and ethnicity) in particular.

Early marriage, for example, has long been practiced in many poor countries as a way to give social and material security to girls. Marriage is believed to protect them from sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and pregnancies out of wedlock, and to avoid social shame in the family (UNDP, 2014). However, the younger the girl, the larger the difference in age with her husband and the less likely there will be an equal partnership in the marriage. This exposes girls to risks for domestic abuse and violence, low educational attainment and poor health due to lack of power to negotiate for safe sex or contraceptives. There is recognition by the international community that early marriage is a violation of fundamental human rights and that such social norms must be discouraged in accordance with international treaty obligations (e.g. the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women).

Attitudes towards violence are another example. While most social norms protect against violence, some expectations of behaviour within a social group can encourage it. Cultural acceptance of violence as a method to resolve conflict or to rear a child is a risk factor for interpersonal violence. Traditional beliefs that men have more authority than women and that they can exercise discipline through physical means make women and girls vulnerable to physical and sexual abuse. Societies that tolerate higher levels of intoxication often believe that alcohol plays a positive role in allowing people to shed their inhibitions (WHO, 2010). However, there is strong evidence of an association between alcohol consumption and violent behaviour.

Decisions about engaging in sexual activity is another area often influenced by social norms and expectations, as well as economic pressures (UNDP, 2014). While early sexual experience is a major source of vulnerabilities for youth (e.g. teenage pregnancies, STIs), it is often a taboo subject among adults. Refusal to acknowledge that young people are engaging in sexual activity can result in youth remaining unprotected and uninformed about risks (UNFPA and PATH, 2006).

Tools to change negative social norms

Laws. Laws can be a key tool in changing behaviour and perceptions of cultural and social norms. While laws that criminalise most forms of homicide exist in nearly all countries, laws to protect women and children from partner or family violence are less present. There has been international pressure to enact and implement such laws. The introduction of laws can have an effect on behaviour for fear of punishment; however, changes in deeply held beliefs will require long-term interventions through advocacy and campaigns (WHO, 2010).

Both young women and men are expected to fulfil certain social roles. Negative stereotypes can discourage them from taking an active role in their own development, be it in terms of education, health services or citizenship. Putting in place legal measures is the first step towards preventing traditional practices that have negative impacts on adolescent and youth well-being. Legal reforms to change social norms, however, must be carefully accompanied with locally adapted advocacy campaigns and education in schools and communities.

Changes in certain social norms can have positive impacts on youth well-being, but implementing laws without taking into account the cultural context can have adverse effects. Traditional practices like female circumcision can be physically and emotionally damaging for girls. Although the phenomenon is in decline, it is still practiced in 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East as a precondition for marriage. However, drastic laws banning such practices without careful consideration of the sociocultural context drove these practices to continue in clandestine rituals with less experienced practitioners and in poor conditions. In Ethiopia, female circumcision is associated with preventing premarital sex, STIs and pregnancy, and uncircumcised girls can be victims of stigma and social isolation (UNDP, 2014).

Box 5.3. Identifying prevailing negative social norms and existing laws

The following are some questions aimed at assessing prevailing negative social norms for youth and identifying existing laws.

Citizenship

Are there laws which affect youth’s free access to public space and freedom of movement?

Do youth have rights to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly?

Is there any information on discriminatory practices restricting youth freedom of expression, public collective action and freedom of assembly?

Are there quotas at national and sub-national levels to promote youth political participation?

What are the attitudes towards youth as political leaders?

Legal age of marriage and early marriage

What is the statutory minimum age of marriage for women and men?

Is there customary or religious law? What minimum age of marriage does it provide for women and men? How widely does this type of law apply?

Is there any planned legislation to change the minimum age of marriage?

Is there any information on how the law related to the age of marriage is implemented in practice?

Domestic violence law and child abuse

Is there a specific law criminalising domestic violence and child abuse? If not, is it criminalised in other legislation? How are domestic violence and child abuse defined?

What mechanisms or measures exist to ensure implementation of law on domestic violence and child abuse? Some actions to consider, when relevant, could include: i) national action plans or policies; ii) legal support for children and youth; iii) awareness-raising activities; and iv) training for the judiciary or police.

Are there data on conviction rates?

Is there information on how social norms and/or stereotypes impact the level of and response to domestic violence and child abuse?

What are the attitudes towards domestic violence and child abuse?

Source: Adapted from the OECD Social Institutions and Gender Index country note questionnaire (unpublished).

Social marketing campaigns. Changing risky or harmful behaviours or attitudes ingrained in societies requires sustained intervention efforts. Beside normative tools, approaches aimed at reducing the gap between actual and perceived behavioural norms prove promising. Actual social norms are what is actually happening in a society or group, while perceived norms are what someone thinks to be the norm. Misperception occurs when there is a large gap between the real and perceived norm and can lead to unhealthy choices in order to conform to incorrectly perceived norms. Young people tend to overestimate the prevalence of risky behaviours like alcohol use, bullying or sexual experience among their peers. Often, it is this misperception that pushes young people into risky behaviours in order to conform to what they believe to be the norm.

One of the more traditional ways of implementing social norms interventions is through social marketing campaigns, the most widely used means being mass media or posters. Social marketing campaigns aim to change negative behaviours and attitudes into positive ones by influencing the pre-existing knowledge and attitudes of young people. National mass media campaigns can be effective in changing negative social norms, prevalent in some societies, such as domestic violence, corporal punishment in schools, negative gender norms and gender-based and sexual violence (Cunningham et al., 2008).

The following is an example of how to implement a social marketing poster campaign (Shamsuddin, N. and Becker, R., n.d.).

Step 1. Collect data to decipher misperceptions about sexuality-related norms

Collect data about misperceptions held by the target audience. For example, in a teen pregnancy prevention programme, the misperception might be that “everyone is doing it”, whereas the data might reveal that 75% of programme participants believe that sex is for adults. The misperception of “everyone is doing it” or “sex is okay for kids my age” might be a misperception to focus on within a campaign.

Step 2. Decide which misperceptions you want to address in your programme

Several misperceptions may emerge from the data. There may be misperceptions in participant attitudes toward their risk for STIs or the acceptability of sexual harassment. By working closely with school or programme administrators, parents and/or community members, programme planners can select the most appropriate and pressing misperceptions to address.

Step 3. Develop messages to address the misperception

Misperception data must be translated into messages that are both highly credible and linguistically appropriate for the audience. Campaign planners can draft several versions of messages to test with the target audience or develop the messages through focus groups. In the latter case, campaign planners can work with participants on key themes that might be incorporated into a message.

Step 4. Conduct focus groups with programme participants to develop message

After messages have been drafted or key message themes identified, it is important to conduct (further) focus groups to learn how to tailor the message to resonate with the target audience. As mentioned, the messages must be credible and comprehensible to be effective. This may also be the time to gain input from participants about the design, layout and look and feel of potential campaign posters.

Parental consent may be needed for participants involved in the focus group process. Providing incentives can help to entice participation. In terms of numbers, a group of eight to ten participants allows for the freedom to share opinions and comments about the message openly. When working with adolescent participants, it is important to set up an environment where they feel comfortable sharing individual opinions as opposed to conforming to responses from the group. To facilitate this, focus group leaders can ask participants to respond in writing to the campaign messages and then share their ideas verbally.

Step 5. Refine messages, develop draft posters and conduct a review by programme administrators

Using focus group input, campaign planners can refine the messages and develop drafts of campaign posters. If resources allow, enlisting a design firm can help to ensure a polished product. If not, traditional word processing, desktop publishing or presentation software can be used to develop draft posters. It is important to have draft posters reviewed and approved by programme administrators, community members, parents or any other stakeholder who may be called upon to support the campaign message.

Step 6. Conduct a second round of focus groups on poster design and layout

After drafts are approved, a second round of focus groups with programme participants can provide important feedback on how the message resonates with the audience. Here, focus group facilitators will want to gain feedback to make sure that the messages are understandable and believable and that the poster design (images, colours, fonts and graphics) are acceptable. Facilitators might also want to solicit input on where the posters should be displayed for greatest visibility.

Step 7. Place posters in strategic programme locations

Given focus group feedback, posters can be placed at strategic locations in schools or at key community locations. Ask focus group participants to help put up posters to instil a sense of investment in the campaign. These participants can be encouraged to act as campaign champions and to promote the campaign among peers and friends.

Step 8. Monitor the poster placements

Programme planners and participants should routinely monitor the posters to ensure that they are still up and have not been defaced. Posters that have been torn down should be replaced. Depending on the goal of the campaign, posters might be kept up for a period of two weeks or longer (if multiple posters are created).

Step 9. Conduct a third round of focus groups and/or data collection to evaluate impact

After the campaign is complete, additional research and focus groups can be conducted to evaluate both the campaign process and its impact. Research can be conducted with programme participants, programme administrators, community members and/or parents.

Life skills approach. The life skills approach is another promising tool that can minimise harmful youth behaviours. It refers to the interactive process of teaching and learning with a focus on acquiring knowledge, attitudes and skills that provide greater resistance to negative pressures. According to WHO, life skills are abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands, challenges, and stress of everyday life (WHO, 2003). Childhood and adolescence are the developmental periods during which one can acquire these skills through various methods and people. Life skills are seen as coping methods that enable youth to provide greater resistance to the negative pressures from their social environment (UNICEF, 2001).

The central idea behind this approach is that such skills can be taught and learned. It is recognized as a methodology particularly effective during child and adolescent development. As such, it has been implemented in schools around the world to tackle issues like adolescent pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, youth violence, conflict, and substance abuse. The life skills approach focuses on three components considered essential to changing behaviours: knowledge, attitudes, and skills (KAS). Whereas most educational methods rely on knowledge, the life skills approach is based on research showing that knowledge only is not enough to change and build positive behaviours (WHO, 2004). The approach teaches youth the ability 1) to become aware of myths and misconceptions (knowledge); 2) to see how social norms reinforce risks (attitudes); and 3) to learn to adapt by adopting positive behaviours (skills). As a result, youth learn skills such as self-awareness, clarification of values, dealing with conflict, resisting pressure, negotiation, and problem solving.

Box 5.4. A life skills approach to prevent health problems from the use of tobacco

A life skills approach can be adopted in schools to reduce young people’s use of tobacco products and to change conditions that affect tobacco use, such as the number of smoke-free environments and the cost and accessibility of cigarettes.

The content of such a programme might include:

Knowledge of the health risks of smoking

Awareness of the insidious tactics employed by the tobacco industry to persuade young people to use tobacco and make them addicted

Attitudes that afford protection against harming one’s health and the health of others;

Critical thinking and decision-making skills to assist in choosing not to use tobacco; communication and refusal skills to withstand peer pressure; and skills to advocate for a smoke-free environment

Teaching methods for this content might include:

A presentation that clearly and convincingly explains the harmful effects of tobacco and how companies use marketing to make tobacco use seem attractive

A discussion and small group work using audio-visual materials to convey the dangers of smoking

An exercise to research strategies that the tobacco industry uses to gain youth as replacement smokers

Role plays to practise refusal skills

A school-wide activity to gain support for a smoke-free school environment

Skills-based health education has proven to be effective in reducing young people’s exposure to tobacco smoke. However, social norms in many communities, as well as, social and economic policies glorify risk-taking behaviour, undermining the goals of skills-based health education. National and local strategies that limit the influence of such policies and practices are needed to achieve the full benefit of skills-based health education.

Source: WHO (2004).

References

Bacon, W. and R. Becker (n.d.), “Changing Social Norms”, Topics in Brief, webpage, Resource Center for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention.

Cunningham, W. et al. (2008), Supporting Youth at Risk: A Policy Toolkit for Middle Income Countries, World Bank, Washington, DC.

DFID (2003), Promoting Institutional and Organisational Development: A Source Book of Tools and Techniques, United Kingdom Department for International Development, London.

OECD (2011), Lessons from Pisa for Mexico, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264107243-en.

OECD (2010), Making Reform Happen: Structural Policies in Times of Crisis, OECD Publishing, Paris, www.oecd.org/site/sgemrh/46159159.pdf (accessed 4 November 2016).

OECD (2008), Building an Institutional Framework for Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA): Guidance for Policy Makers, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264050013-en.

Shamsuddin, N. and R. Becker (n.d.), “How to Implement a Social Marketing Poster Campaign”, Skills for Educators, webpage, Resource Center for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention.

UNDP (2014), Citizen Security with a Human Face: Evidence and Proposals for Latin America, Regional Human Development Report 2013-2014, United Nations Development Programme, New York.

UNFPA and PATH (2006), Meeting the Need: Strengthening Family Planning Programs, United Nations Population Fund and Program for Appropriate Technology in Health, New York/Seattle.

UNICEF (2001), Life Skill Approach, www.unicef.org/teachers/teacher/lifeskil.htm

WHO (2014), Health for the World’s Adolescents: A Second Chance in the Second Decade, World Health Organization, Geneva.

WHO (2010), Preventing Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence against Women: Taking Action and Generating Evidence, World Health Organization, Geneva.

WHO (2009), “Changing Cultural and Social Norms that Supports Violence”, Series of briefings on violence prevention: the evidence, World Health Organization, Geneva.

WHO (2004), Skills for Health: Skills-based health education including life skills:An important component of a Child-Friendly/Health-Promoting School, WHO Information Series on School Health, Document 9, World Health Organization, Geneva.

Chapter 6.

Evaluating the impact and cost-effectiveness of youth programmes (Module 4)

Developing comprehensive programmes to support youth well-being is becoming an important objective in many countries around the world. Unfortunately, as policy makers consider measures to help young people, they are often challenged by the lack of information on what their options are, what has worked well and what may be the most cost-effective intervention to enhance youth outcomes. In this context, more rigorous evidence is needed on the impact and cost-effectiveness of youth programmes. This section presents tool to carry out impact evaluations.

Impact evaluation of a youth programme aims to assess the effectiveness of such programme in relation to a desired change in the well-being of the affected target population. Quantitative impact evaluation permits generalisations to be made about large populations on the basis of much smaller samples and can help attribute impact to a particular programme. To determine the most cost-effective options among effective programmes, quantitative impact evaluation needs to be combined with a cost-effectiveness or a cost-benefit analysis. Integrating qualitative and quantitative approaches in programme evaluation can further yield insights that neither approach would produce on its own. For a comprehensive overview of impact evaluation methods, see Hempel and Fiala (2012). For a review of concrete examples of youth programmes targeting different dimensions and their impact evaluation, see Knowles and Behrman (2005).

Experimental methods

Experimental methods are the most robust method to evaluate the impact of a programme. They can be applied only if the following conditions are met: i) the impact evaluation is planned right from the beginning, before the programme starts; ii) there is excess demand in the sense that not all eligible individuals participate in the programme; and iii) the selection of participants and non-participants is based on random assignment or voluntary participation. Experimental methods include lottery, randomised phase-in and randomised promotion.

Lottery design

Lottery design is the most robust type of impact evaluation. It can be conducted only if the selection of participants and non-participants is based on random assignment and if the programme is delivered all at once.

Lottery design is obtained through a randomised controlled trial. First, a representative sample of the eligible population is selected at random. Then, the sample is randomly split between two groups of equal or very similar size: those who will benefit from the programme (treatment group) and those who will not (control group). If the representative sample is large enough, the treatment and control groups will have, on average, similar characteristics. At the end of the programme, the difference in outcomes between the two groups will only be attributable to the intervention because all the other factors affecting outcomes will have, on average, the same effects on the two groups.

When applying a lottery design, the impact evaluation is externally valid, which means that the estimated impact can be generalised to the entire eligible population. This is because the sample of participants and non-participants is randomly selected and therefore has similar characteristics, on average, to the total eligible population.

Randomised phase-in design

Randomised phase-in design applies if the selection of participants and non-participants is based on random assignment and if the programme is rolled out over time. Randomised phase-in design follows the same process as lottery design to determine the treatment and control groups and to evaluate the impact of a programme. The only difference is that, in randomised phase-in design, the process is repeated for each phase of the programme. Each eligible individual has the same chance of receiving the programme under each of the phases.

Randomised phase-in design allows comparing the impact between participants who receive the programme first and participants who receive it later. The long-term impact of a programme cannot be estimated with this method if all eligible individuals end up receiving the programme because, in that case, no comparison group can be established.

Randomised promotion design

Randomised promotion design is used when potential beneficiaries cannot be excluded from a programme, either because it is impossible (the programme is open to all eligible individuals and participation is voluntary) or because it is not desirable (the programme has sufficient resources to cover the entire eligible population).

As with the previous methods, the first step in randomised promotion design is to select a representative sample of the eligible population randomly. Once the sample is obtained, it is not possible to assign individuals into the treatment and control groups randomly, as is done in the previous methods, because the programme cannot control who participates and who does not. To overcome this problem, the randomised promotion design proposes, as a next step, to promote the programme randomly or, said differently, to select individuals randomly who are encouraged to benefit from the programme.

Random promotion of a programme is based on the assumption that there are three types of potential beneficiaries: i) individuals who never participate; ii) individuals who always participate; and iii) individuals who participate only if they are incentivised.

Whatever the incentives or encouragement, there will be always some individuals in the non-promoted group who will take up the programme and some individuals in the promoted group who will not. However, the promotion can be considered effective if enrolment in the programme is found to be relatively higher for the promoted group compared to the non-promoted group. Because the promotion is conducted randomly, both groups will have, on average, similar characteristics.

The impact of the programme cannot be estimated by comparing the outcomes between participants and non-participants because both groups are not random and therefore have characteristics that differ. The impact is estimated instead by comparing the outcomes of those who received the promotion with those who did not receive it. Concretely, the impact is calculated as the difference in average outcomes between the promoted and non-promoted groups, corrected by the difference in enrolment rates.

Randomised promotion design is as reliable as the other experimental methods but has two major caveats. First, it requires larger sample sizes in order to obtain statistically significant results; second, the estimated impact is valid only for individuals who participated in the programme because they were encouraged and therefore cannot be generalised to the entire eligible population.

Quasi-experimental methods

Quasi-experimental methods are generally less robust but allow estimating the impact of a programme when experimental methods are not applicable, that is, when the impact evaluation cannot be planned during the design phase or when the selection of participants and non-participants cannot be based on random assignment or voluntary participation. Quasi-experimental methods include discontinuity design, difference-in-difference and matching.

Discontinuity design

Discontinuity design applies when participation in a programme is determined by an eligibility threshold. Potential beneficiaries are given a score and ranked based on specific and measurable criteria (e.g. age, test scores, poverty index). If they score higher/lower than a minimum/maximum threshold, then they are accepted into the programme. Discontinuity design assumes that participants and non-participants who are close to the threshold share similar characteristics. As such, the impact of the programme is obtained by calculating the difference in outcomes between these two groups.

This method requires a clearly defined threshold and a sample that is large enough to obtain a minimum number of observations around the threshold. The estimated impact is valid only for participants near the threshold and cannot be generalised to other participants or to the eligible population.

Difference-in-difference

Difference-in-difference provides much less robust results than all previous methods presented because it is used in programmes where the treatment and control groups are determined neither randomly nor with clear objective criteria, but following subjective rules, i.e. they are believed to be comparable. In such cases, the treatment and control groups are very likely to have differing characteristics, and the difference-in-difference method can only provide a poor estimate of the impact. The impact cannot be calculated by simply comparing the outcomes of the treatment and control groups once the programme is completed because both groups are selected on a subjective basis.

What the difference-in-difference does instead is to compare outcomes both before and after the intervention. The method is based on a very basic assumption according to which the differences in characteristics between the treatment and control groups, which are very likely to exist, are constant over time. With this assumption, the trend of the control group can serve as the counterfactual to estimate the impact of a programme.

The problem with this assumption is that it may be true for observable characteristics (e.g. age, gender) but is quite unrealistic as regards unobservable characteristics, since the latter tend to evolve over time (e.g. non-cognitive skills, preferences). This is indeed problematic because, if differences in characteristics change over time, the estimated impact of the programme will be biased. A way to test this assumption is to observe the trend in outcomes of the treatment and control groups before the implementation of the programme and determine whether they follow a similar pattern.

In difference-in-difference design, outcomes of the treatment and control groups are measured both at the beginning and at the end of the intervention. The impact is then estimated by subtracting the difference in pre-intervention outcomes from the difference in post-intervention outcomes.

As said, difference-in-difference provides less reliable results and is based on a strong assumption that can be difficult to verify. In addition, this method requires more efforts in terms of data collection: two data collections before the programme starts to test the assumption and another at the end to allow estimating the impact.

Matching

As with difference-in-difference, matching is also used for programmes where the treatment and control groups are subjectively selected. Thus, it constitutes an alternative method for estimating impact in these particular programmes.

In the matching method, the control group is identified by matching each participant of a programme with a non-participant who is as similar as possible, based on observable characteristics. The impact is obtained by calculating the difference in average outcomes between the treatment and control groups.

The matching method has several caveats. First, it requires a sample that is large enough to determine an appropriate control group. Second, it cannot control for unobservable characteristics. If the treatment and control groups differ in unobserved characteristics, as is very likely to happen, the estimated impact will be biased. Third, it can be difficult to find a match for each participant, especially when the sample is small and the number of observed characteristics considered is large. Matching only a small number of observed characteristics is not recommended because the matching will be less precise and the treatment and control groups less comparable.

Cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analyses

Impact evaluation is a good instrument to assess the effectiveness of a programme, but it generally does not take into account the full range of benefits that are generated and misses the other side of the coin: the costs. Moreover, different programmes can lead to the same impact, in which case impact evaluation does not suffice to evidence which of them is the best.

To determine the overall success of a programme, two types of analysis can be conducted: i) cost-effectiveness analysis; and ii) cost-benefit analysis. These two methods mainly differ in that cost-effectiveness analysis denominates benefits in physical units, whereas cost-benefit analysis denominates benefits in money equivalent terms (Hempel and Fiala, 2012).

Cost-effectiveness analysis identifies the total costs of a programme and calculates the level of output or outcome per monetary unit spent to determine if the programme is cost-effective. It allows identifying the most efficient allocation of resources (most cost-effective programme) when alternative programmes exist and are compared.

Cost-benefit analysis weighs the total costs and benefits of a programme and calculates the ratio of benefits to costs. It allows determining if the programme is cost-beneficial, i.e. whether the benefits outweigh the costs or, in other words, whether investing in the programme yields overall positive returns. Cost-benefit analysis requires identifying all the costs and benefits that are directly or indirectly related to a programme. In cost-effectiveness analysis, only the costs are needed.

Total costs are calculated by multiplying the quantity of inputs used by their prices. There are different types of costs. Financial costs refer to inputs that have been purchased and therefore whose prices are known. In turn, economic costs refer to inputs that have been used for free and therefore have no explicit monetary value (e.g. volunteering). For this type of inputs, the price can be proxied by the opportunity cost (i.e. the value of the best alternative use).

Costs can also be either fixed or variable. Fixed costs are expenditures incurred before the output is produced. Variable costs are the costs of actually producing the outputs once the fixed costs have been incurred. If the programme is susceptible to generate future benefits and costs, it is important to discount them.

Costs can be calculated on average or at the margin. Average costs correspond to the total expenditure divided over the quantity of outputs produced, and marginal costs to the amount of money necessary to produce an additional unit of output. The former are computed using both fixed and variable costs, whereas the latter are computed using only variable costs.

Mixed quantitative-qualitative approaches

The previous section presented the most commonly used methods to conduct a quantitative impact evaluation. The present section, in turn, emphasises the importance of complementing quantitative results with qualitative information in order to better comprehend the outcomes of a programme and interpret its estimated impact. For a comprehensive discussion on the integration of quantitative and qualitative methods, see Bamberger (2000).

The best way to assess the effectiveness of a programme comprehensively is to rely on mixed approaches to impact evaluation, which combine both quantitative and qualitative methods. Incorporating qualitative methods, such as open-ended surveys, in-depth interviews, case studies, focus groups, participatory tools or direct participant observation can indeed improve the analysis in a number of ways:

Quality of programme implementation: The way a programme is implemented has necessarily an incidence on its outcomes. It is important to understand how the quality of implementation has affected the outcomes in order to better interpret impact evaluation results. Quality of implementation is best captured through a close monitoring of the programme and qualitative methods, including key informant interviews, direct participant observation and focus groups.

Impact heterogeneity across target groups: The impact of a programme may vary across different target groups. Quantitative methods can evidence impact heterogeneity but, in contrast to qualitative methods, they offer limited possibilities to understand the drivers behind these varying effects and the way they operate.

Contextual information: The outcomes of a programme can be affected by a range of contextual factors that cannot be fully captured through quantitative methods. Mixed approaches can thus be used in order to have a better knowledge of the context in which a programme is implemented and of how the context affects the outcomes.

Qualitative outcomes: Outcomes are often difficult to capture with quantitative methods (e.g. mental health, empowerment). In such cases, mixed methods, including qualitative interviews, focus groups and case studies, are useful to identify appropriate qualitative indicators and to better understand the programme impact.

References

Bamberger, M. (ed.) (2000), Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Research in Development Projects, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Hempel, K. and N. Fiala (2012), Measuring Success of Youth Livelihood Interventions: A Practical Guide to Monitoring and Evaluation, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Knowles, J.C. and J.R. Behrman (2005), The Economic Returns to Investing in Youth in Developing Countries: A Review of the Literature, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Chapter 7.

Measuring the costs of well-being deprivation (Module 5)

The OECD well-being approach emphasises the relational aspects of well-being and development, recognising that development is not just about living better but about living together in a better way. In this respect, experiencing deprivation in one or more well-being dimensions comes with costs to the individual, society and the economy as a whole. This module presents a framework to estimate society and individual opportunity costs due to youth deprivations in well-being.

Calculating the costs of well-being deprivation is important for several reasons, foremost among which is that it can help make the case for investing in youth policies and programmes. First, not knowing the true costs of youth deprivation can lead to underinvestment in youth. Creating awareness of the true costs of well-being deprivation could drive policy makers to give a higher importance to youth inclusion and well-being and drive young people to reconsider some of their actions (World Bank, 2008).

Second, recognising the costs of well-being deprivation has major implications for cost-benefit analyses of youth investments. Appraisals of social programmes tend to be challenging, as the expected benefits often lack a price tag. For example, programmes aiming at keeping young people in school do not have a direct monetary benefit to balance the costs. A better understanding of the cost-savings potential of investments in youth can put a price tag on the benefits of social programmes and encourage policy makers to revisit their policy choices.

Third, from a public finance perspective, reducing youth deprivations in well-being may require further investments. Policy makers may not be able to tackle all deprivations simultaneously and understanding the costs may aid in using available funds and political will efficiently. Allied to this, the costs of deprivations in well-being vary strongly, which can point to policy priorities. Being aware of the variation in the costs helps policy makers to set priority areas.

The costing framework

In theory, costs can be divided into i) actual expenses (financial costs) incurred as a direct consequence of deprivation; and ii) foregone economic possibilities due to underutilisation of resources (opportunity costs). In practice, the financial costs are not systematically measured. Further, costs can be attributed to the paying party: the individual experiencing the deprivation and society as a whole, including individuals upon whom negative outcomes are inflicted.

This costing framework focuses on opportunity costs. The financial costs usually lack good-quality data by which to estimate them; either they do not exist or they are not disaggregated by age. Unbalanced data availability can distort cost estimation; well-being deprivations with little data will appear to have lower costs than well-being deprivations with rich data. To avoid these potentials for misrepresentation, this framework focuses on opportunity costs, which can be easily calculated with the available data. Still, this framework does give some examples of financial costs, while recognising that data availability impedes the calculation of most.

This costing framework represents a conservative approximation of the real costs of young people’s well-being deprivations. A robust framework requires that costs can be clearly quantified, monetised and attributed to a well-being deprivation. Numerous intangible costs are associated with well-being deprivations, such as loneliness, psychological distress, lower civic and social engagement, young people opting out of democratic participation, the transmission of poverty and vulnerability to future generations, and emigration. Most of these intangible costs are hard to monetise due to their complexity. They also result from a combination of factors beyond a particular deprivation in well-being. These intertwined causes impede clear cost attribution. Given its difficulty, this exercise restricts itself to calculating foregone labour earnings. Therefore, the estimates have to be seen as a lower bound, whereas the real costs to society will be higher.

Well-being deprivations can have short-term and long-term effects. The costs of short-term effects occur solely in the year of observation. Negative outcomes with long-lasting effects are calculated over a lifetime, discounted for the year of observation and transformed into a year-on-year average over a lifetime. An important underlying assumption to calculate lifetime costs is that the present earnings of any given age group are a proxy for the earnings of a present young person when reaching that age group (World Bank, 2003).

Marginal costs can be more telling for agenda setting. In many cases, eliminating the well-being deprivations of all young people and restoring their full productivity remains an ideal, hard-to-reach scenario. Knowing the costs of well-being deprivation can thus help to set priorities. The costs of deprivations in well-being vary strongly. At times, this variation stems from the number of young people experiencing the different deprivations in well-being. Potentially, this can lead to misinterpretation and underestimating the severity of a well-being deprivation. The marginal costs – the unit cost to each young person experiencing the deprivation – are therefore more important for agenda setting (Eurofound, 2012). Marginal costs can also be used in cost-benefit analyses, e.g. the marginal costs multiplied by the number of reduced deprivations can be contrasted to the programme’s costs.

The subsequent part presents the methodology to estimate the costs of the following well-being deprivations: i) early school leavers; ii) NEET; iii) teenage pregnancy and early motherhood; iv) substance abuse; v) sexually transmitted infections (STIs); and vi) crime and violence. Each is delineated in three parts: i) an explanation of which costs are considered; ii) formulas to estimate costs that can be reliably monetised, quantified and attributed; and iii) suggested potential data sources.

Box 7.1. Earnings: The basis for calculating the costs of well-being deprivation

This costing framework uses labour earnings to approximate the costs of well-being deprivation. The underlying assumption of opportunity costs is that the deprived young person would have been working if the deprivation would not have existed. Thus, the deprived individual foregoes earnings due to reduced labour market activity caused by the well-being deprivation. In many developing and emerging economies, self-employment plays a greater role than in OECD countries. Therefore, this framework takes an inclusive approach to income, including income from wages and salaries, as well as income from self-employment and other relevant sources.

This framework is a static model, allowing for an easy application. It disregards spill-over effects of well-being deprivations. More importantly, it does not include labour market responses to the well-being deprivations. An influx of additional young people into the labour force (those currently excluded due to their deprivations) will affect the equilibrium wage. This changing equilibrium wage is, however, not accounted for in this costing framework, which serves as a crude proxy.

The non-zero earnings of young people not affected by the particular well-being deprivation serve as an estimate for the costs of deprivation. The best estimate of the foregone earnings is obtained by applying the propensity score matching method (described in Module 4). This method compares the young people experiencing the well-being deprivation with their statistical twins who are not experiencing the deprivation. Using the earnings of the statistical twin has the advantage that it accounts for potential systematic differences in the background characteristics of the two groups (e.g. ethnicity, skills, educational background, gender and health status), which may bias the potential earnings of the young people experiencing the deprivation. In the absence of adequate data to conduct propensity score matching, wage modelling (e.g. a Mincer-type earnings regression) or non-zero median youth earning can be used to estimate the foregone earnings. This estimate for the foregone earnings should, however, be seen as an upper band, as young people experiencing the deprivation may differ from the non-affected youth in a number of ways and therefore be unable to obtain their median earning (The Prince’s Trust, 2007).

The costs of early school dropout

School attendance is of great consequence to the individual and to society. At school, young people gain knowledge and learn how to function as a member of society. Endowing young people with the most basic skills significantly improves chances of employment in adulthood. Dropping out of school early, combined with other risk factors, can have a domino effect, leading, for example, to substance abuse. It also increases the likelihood of unemployment, which in turn increases the state’s social spending (Assunção and Carvalho, 2003). Furthermore, early school leavers are less likely to find legitimate work, leaving the door open to delinquencies (Lochner and Moretti, 2004). This domino effect underlines the importance of investing in youth to prevent leaving school early.

This costing framework focuses on the negative outcomes of dropping out of school early. Early school dropout is itself a negative outcome and simultaneously a risk factor leading to risk-taking behaviours (see Module 1). Calculating the costs of early school dropout faces the difficulties in quantifying and monetising potential secondary costs. The present methodology leads to a conservative calculation, representing a lower bound of the costs. The costs of risk-taking behaviours due to dropping out of school early (e.g. drug abuse) or subsequent costs (e.g. unemployment) are calculated in the respective sections, if the negative outcomes materialise.

Generally speaking, interrupted human capital accumulations and the lower productivity and income associated with it are the costs of leaving school early (Assunção and Carvalho, 2003) (Table 7.1). Lower productivity compared to peers who complete their education corresponds to lower salaries and fringe benefits (e.g. subsidised meals, company discounts), and consequently to lower taxes revenues.

Table 7.1. Opportunity costs of early school dropout
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Foregone earning potential (due to lower earnings) Foregone fringe benefits
Society | Foregone tax revenues (due to lower earnings)
Sources: Based on Cohen (1998); Assunção, J. and L. Carvalho (2003); and World Bank (2008).

The total cost of dropping out of school early is the sum of the different cost elements presented below. The costs are calculated over a lifetime. These are divided over the working years to obtain the annual costs over a lifetime. The individual opportunity costs of dropping out of school early are calculated over a lifetime because early school leavers rarely finish school later in their lives “affecting their entire earnings path for the rest of their lives” (Chaaban and Cunningham, 2011).

The individual opportunity costs of leaving school early – the lower productivity of drop-outs – are proxied by the foregone earning potential () and the foregone fringe benefits ( The foregone earning potential is measured by the lifelong differences in earnings between the achieved level of education (es) and the next higher level of education (es’). The earnings of the next higher educational level (es’) are adjusted for an ability bias. It is commonly argued that school drop-outs “are less able” than those who actually completed a higher level of education (Chaaban and Cunningham, 2011). The es’ are therefore commonly reduced by 10% to account for this ability bias. The comparisons undertaken are lower secondary school degree versus primary school degree and primary school degree versus no education at all. The total lifetime earnings are calculated from the drop-out age (t) until the average retirement age (T) and discounted at the rate r. For simplicity reasons, zero years of unemployment are assumed. The presumed age of drop-outs entering the labour market is the average age of graduates of the next higher degree plus two years (Assunção and Carvalho, 2003). Finally, to obtain the total, the costs of the above-mentioned comparisons (e.g. lower secondary degree versus primary school degree) are multiplied by the number of early school leavers at the respective level (ds):

The second element of the individual opportunity costs are the foregone fringe benefits (, which tend to increase with educational level. The foregone fringe benefits are the difference between the average fringe benefits at the actual educational level (fbs) and the average fringe benefits at the next higher educational level (fbs’). The foregone fringe benefits are, like the foregone earnings, lifetime costs and thus have to be discounted over a lifetime. The multiplication by the number of early school leavers at each educational level (ds) gives the total costs:

The society’s opportunity costs are proxied by lower tax revenues due to lower earnings (). The foregone tax revenues assume both full compliance with the tax code and zero tax evasion. The calculation of the foregone tax revenues takes the formula for the foregone earning potential and multiplies it by the marginal tax rate and social security contributions (tx),

Table 7.2. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: leaving school early
Indicators | Data sources
Earnings of the respective levels () | Household surveys
Number of early school leavers at the respective levels () | Administrative data, national population census, household and/or labour force surveys, World Bank EdStats
Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data

The costs of NEET

Among other things, the rate of the young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) depicts the (potential) underutilisation of youth labour. The NEET rate can be more accurate than the unemployment rate because it also includes all young people not actively looking for employment and it excludes those attending school or (vocational) training (as opposed to the inactivity rate). The NEET rate also helps to capture gender disparities, such as different labour market participation rates between young men and women. Being NEET is both a negative outcome and a risk factor and can lead to costly coping mechanisms. Being unemployed or a NEET is also one of the major sources of unhappiness (Layard, 2005), which can increase risk-taking behaviours, such as substance abuse, with subsequent costs to individuals and to society.

In addition to the opportunity costs, there are financial costs, such as looking for a job (going to job centres, screening vacancies, travelling to interviews), and providing (re-) training programmes and active labour market policies targeted at young people. These financial costs are, however, difficult to measure.

Table 7.3. Opportunity costs of NEET youth
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Foregone earnings (due to inactivity) Foregone fringe benefits (due to inactivity)
Society | Foregone tax revenues
Sources: Based on Eurofound (2012); World Bank (2003); and World Bank (2008).

The costs of the NEET are calculated only for the year of observation. Although young people enter and exit the labour market frequently, calculating the deterioration of skills is a complex undertaking. Thus, it is assumed that skills deterioration does not have lifetime consequences on labour income (Chaaban and Cunningham, 2011). Evidence of young people’s deterioration of skills and a lasting wage penalty caused by their frequent entry and exit in the labour market are mixed. The lasting impact depends greatly on the individual’s skill level, the duration of being in neither education, employment nor training, and the timeframe of analysis (The Prince’s Trust, 2007).

The costs of the well-being deprivation are calculated for all young people who were in neither employment, education nor training for 6 months or more in the past 12 months (Eurofound, 2012). This threshold is chosen as often there is a natural brief gap between the transitions from education to labour or between jobs. Young people who are without work for less than six months should not be considered NEET, to avoid an overestimation of the costs. The total cost of NEET is the sum of the different cost elements presented below.

The individual opportunity costs of being a NEET (IOCNEET) are the foregone earnings (ey) and fringe benefits due to inactivity. These two elements are multiplied by the number of NEET (NEET) to obtain the total cost. The fringe benefits (fby) granted to young people include all non-wage labour market remuneration.

The society’s opportunity costs of joblessness (SOCNEET) are the foregone average tax payments and the foregone social security contribution (scy), which are obtained by multiplying the annual youth earnings (ey) by the marginal tax rate and social security contributions (tx), and by the youth multiplied by the number of NEET:

Table 7.4. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: NEET youth
Indicators | Data sources
Youth earnings (ey) | Household surveys, ILO, World Bank
Fringe benefits (fby) | Enterprise surveys
Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data
NEET | School-to-work transition surveys (SWTS), labour force surveys, population census and/or household surveys

Box 7.2. The cost of NEET in Viet Nam

The total cost of NEET in Viet Nam is estimated at 2.5% of GDP. The individual opportunity cost (IOC) of NEET compares the earnings and fringe benefits a youth would get if he/she were not a NEET assuming they would miss out entirely on these benefits. For Individual financial cost (IFC), the same is done with out of pocket payments. Society’s opportunity cost (SOC) is calculated by taking youth tax payments of non-NEETs and assumes that this is what society is not getting from NEETs. The society’s financial cost (SFC) is ideally meant to capture the expenditure on training and unemployment benefits for NEETs, although this cost is not available due to data limitations.

Table 7.5. The cost of NEET, split by individual/social opportunity/financial costs
Cost | % of GDP | Billion USD | Billion VND
Individual opportunity cost, due to foregone earnings | 2.38% | 3.70 | 77,121
Individual financial cost, due to loss of rights to conditional benefits | 0.10% | 0.16 | 3,261
Social opportunity cost, due to foregone tax revenues | 0.08% | 0.13 | 2,706
Social financial cost, due to training
Total Cost of NEET | 2.56% | 3.99 | 83,088
Source: Own calculations based on VHLSS 2012

The individual opportunity cost due to foregone earnings is again the most significant cost. Not being in employment, education or training means these young people are missing out completely on earnings whilst being NEET, hence are foregoing a lot of money. While the individual finance cost and social opportunity cost is relatively low in comparison (although both account to over 100 million USD each). The individual finance cost is made up of medical expenses. Considering young people incur less medical costs than people older than themselves (Alemayehu and Warner 2004), this could explain why the value is relatively low. The social opportunity cost, which takes into account taxes, is low as some of the equivalent young people being compared to these NEET are those who are in education and training. Thus, they will not be paying much tax.

The costs of teenage pregnancy and motherhood

Teenage pregnancy and motherhood can have negative implications for the well-being of mother and child. Pregnancy during adolescence carries a number of health risks for both. Abortions can pose psychological costs to the teenager, and there are costs of the unborn life. Teenage mothers can be socially stigmatised, and if the child is born out of wedlock, the young mother can experience fewer marriage possibilities. These deprivations in well-being can ultimately result in a disadvantaged upbringing for the child, which will impact the inclusion of the child in society and labour market. Teenage pregnancy and motherhood also reduces inter-generational mobility for the teenage mother and the child (Smeeding, 2015). Teenage mothers tend to suffer constrains that make it difficult for them to get ahead economically; consequently, they also invest less in their children’s opportunities. Although these intangibles (psychological costs, disadvantaged upbringing of children and inter-generational mobility) are part of the costs of teenage pregnancy, monetising and quantifying them is beyond the scope of this exercise.

Teenage pregnancy and motherhood tend to have long-term impacts on the mother’s earnings. Scholars commonly “assume a constant wage gap over their working lives between young mothers and young women who postponed their childbearing” (Chaaban and Cunningham, 2011). This wage gap cannot be solely explained by dropping out of school. Young mothers also have fewer employment opportunities due to their care tasks – especially if they are single mothers – forcing them to take less lucrative jobs, work fewer hours and consequently accumulate less from on-the-job training (World Bank, 2003). Some of the negative outcomes of teenage pregnancy and motherhood, such as dropping out of school or leaving the labour market, may have already materialised. In cases the pregnant teenager or teenage mothers is a NEET, the costs due to foregone earnings are included in that section.

The financial cost of teenage pregnancy and motherhood are the most evident costs, although difficult to measure. Financial costs, such as medical expenses for teenage pregnancies, those mothers and their children, as well as for abortion, tend to be higher than for adult pregnancies due to the higher probability of complications (Assunção and Carvalho, 2003).

Table 7.6. Opportunity costs of teenage pregnancy and motherhood
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Wage gap (due to lower employability)
Society | Foregone tax revenues (due to lower employability)
Sources: Based on Assunção, J. and L. Carvalho (2003), World Bank (2008) and Chaaban (2008).

The total cost of teenage pregnancy and motherhood is the sum of the different cost elements presented below. As indicated, young mothers face lifelong opportunity costs. These are divided over the working life to obtain the annual costs over a lifetime. This section focuses on young women aged 15-19.

The lower employability of young mothers represents the individual opportunity costs of teenage pregnancy and motherhood ( and are proxied by the earnings gap between young mothers and women who delayed pregnancy. This earnings gap is calculated the same way as the foregone earnings due to early school leaving. It is the difference between the median earnings of women delaying childbirth () and the median earnings of women bearing children during adolescence (). This difference is multiplied by the number of teenage mothers and pregnant teenagers (my).

The society’s opportunity costs of teenage pregnancy and motherhood () are captured by the lower tax revenues due to young mothers’ earnings gap. The calculation follows the same formula as the SOC of early school leaving.

Table 7.7. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: teenage pregnancy and motherhood
Indicators | Data sources
Earnings of women delaying childbirth () | Household surveys
Earnings of teenage mothers () | Household surveys
Number of teenage mothers and pregnant teenagers () | Civil registration data; household surveys; Demographic and Health Surveys, population census, World Bank HNPStats
Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data

The costs of illicit substance abuse

Illicit substance abuse (marijuana, amphetamines or methamphetamines, cocaine, solvents or inhalants, ecstasy, heroin) by youth has short-term and long-term costs. The long-term costs are the “deterioration of health status as well [the] derangement of mental faculties” (Assunção and Carvalho, 2003). The deterioration of health can also develop long after initiating substance abuse. Although these late costs stem from a risky behaviour started as a young person, they are excluded from this exercise. This costing framework focuses on the opportunity costs resulting from reduced productivity or premature death due to substance abuse.

Illicit substance abuse also has short-term financial costs originating from coping mechanisms, among others. Substance abusers may have health problems or go to rehabilitation centres. The financial costs from medical care and rehabilitation are partially borne by the substance abusers (or the addict’s kin) and partially by society. Substance abusers are also more likely to depend on social assistance. Costs of substance abuse may also impact third parties. In some cases, substance abuse can lead to accidents or violent acts resulting in injury to others or property damage, as well as incarceration (these costs are an outcome of crime or violence and are therefore included in that calculation). The fight against drugs is also a financial cost of substance abuse-related crime and violence. Other third party costs are the psychological distress relatives may suffer, as well as the neglect or psychologically mistreatment substance abusers may inflict on their children. Children of young substance abusers, who grow up in a poor and abusive environment, may face difficulties in integrating into society and the labour market.

The cost of substance abuse is the sum of the different cost elements presented below. Some of the costs are calculated over a working life. These are divided over the working life to obtain the annual costs over a lifetime. The annual costs over a lifetime and the costs only occurring in the year of observation can then be aggregated for illustrative purposes to obtain the cost of substance abuse in the year of observation.

Table 7.8. Opportunity costs of substance abuse
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Foregone earnings (due to reduced productivity)
Society | Foregone tax revenues
Source: Cohen (1998), Assunção and Carvalho, (2003), World Bank (2004), World Bank (2008).

Substance abusers forego earnings while in rehabilitation centres, representing one of the individual opportunity costs (). The foregone earnings due to being in a rehabilitation centre are calculated for the year of observation by multiplying the median youth earnings (ey) with the number of young people in rehabilitation centres (rpy).

Individual opportunity costs can also occur over a lifetime, caused by premature death or reduced productivity (). The foregone earnings of premature death due to substance abuse are the discounted average lifetime earnings. This proxy is a conservative estimation of the costs of premature death. The average lifetime earnings (et) are multiplied by the number of young people dying from substance abuse (sdy). Foregone lifetime earnings potential due to lower productivity are calculated the same way as the foregone earnings due to school drop-out. It is the difference between the median earnings (et) and the median earnings of people with lower productivity due to substance abuse (), multiplied by the number of young substance abusers with reduced physical capacity due to substance abuse (ay). In case of lacking data on the median earnings of people with lower productivity due to substance abuse, the median earnings (et) can be multiplied with a factor accounting for the reduced productivity. Assunção and Carvalho (2003) propose a factor of 9.9%. For simplicity, it is assumed that t is age 30 and that people work until retirement age.

The society’s opportunity costs are the foregone tax income due to rehabilitation centre stays, lower productivity and death. The foregone taxes due to rehabilitation centre stays () are the tax payments of young people (ey* tx) multiplied by the number of young people in rehabilitation centres (rpy).

The foregone taxes due to premature death are the discounted lifetime tax payments (ey * tx) multiplied by the number of young people dying from substance abuse (sdy). The reduced tax revenues due to lower productivity are the difference between the average (tpt) and the reduced tax payments () over a lifetime, multiplied by the number of young substance abuser (ay) with lower productivity due to substance abuse.

Table 7.9. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: youth substance abuse
Indicators | Data sources
Average youth earnings (ey) | Household surveys, national statistics, ILO, World Bank
Number of young people in rehabilitation centres (rpy). | Administrative data
Earnings at age t (et) | Household surveys, national statistics
Earnings of an individual with lower productivity due to substance abuse at age t () |

Number of young substance abuser (ay)

Annual Reports Questionnaire; school surveys; youth risk behaviour surveys; household surveys, government sources; Global youth tobacco survey; international surveys: World Health Survey; STEPwise approach to surveillance; Gender, alcohol, and culture: An international survey; European Cancer Anaemia Survey

Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data

The costs of sexually transmitted infections (STIs)

Early sexual activity and unprotected intercourse – whether due to lack of information, lack of access or carelessness – can result in sexually transmitted infections. STIs – especially fatal STIs, such as HIV/AIDS – represent a cost to the infected individual and to society. Some costs, such as reduced life quality or premature death, require the difficult task of monetising the value of life. This framework limits itself to foregone labour earnings and tax revenues due to death and reduced productivity.

Financial costs of STIs are typically the additional costs for medical care. Fatal STI have also indirect costs, such as social stigma, orphaned children or the family distress in case of death. Individuals suffering from STIs contribute less intangible goods (i.e. culturally, politically, etc.) to civil society, and there is the immanent risk for infecting others. Although psychological distress and infection of others are part of STI costs, monetising and quantifying them is beyond the scope of this exercise.

Table 7.10. Opportunity costs for youth with STIs
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Cost of premature death Reduced productivity (due to infection)
Society | Foregone tax revenues (due to loss of returns from state investment in the individual)
Sources: Based on World Bank (2003), World Bank (2008).

The total cost of STI is the sum of the different cost elements presented below. The costs are calculated over a working life. These are divided over the working life to obtain the annual costs.

Young people suffering from STIs forego lifetime earnings due to lower productivity and premature death. These individual opportunity costs ()are calculated the same way as the foregone earnings due to substance abuse. It is the difference between the median earnings (et) and the median earnings of people with lower productivity due to STIs (), multiplied by the number of young people with reduced physical capacity due to STIs (). For simplicity, it is assumed that t is age 30 and that people work until retirement age. Approximating the costs of premature death due to fatal STIs as the discounted lifetime earnings is a conservative approach, which underestimates the true cost. The average lifetime earnings (et) are multiplied by the number of young people dying from STIs (si).

The society’s opportunity costs are the foregone taxes () due to dying prematurely and lower tax revenues due to reduced productivity. The foregone taxes due to premature death are the discounted lifetime tax payments () multiplied by the number of young people dying from STIs (siy). The reduced tax revenues due to lower productivity are the difference between the average () and reduced tax payments () over a lifetime, multiplied by the number of young people with STIs with lower productivity (dy).

Table 7.11. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: youth STIs
Indicators | Data sources
Youth earnings (ey) | Household surveys, national statistics, ILO, World Bank
Earnings at age t (et) | Household surveys, national statistics, ILO, World Bank
Earnings of somebody with lower productivity due to fatal STIs at age t () |
Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data

The costs of crime and violence

Careers in crime usually lead to further exclusion. Young offenders, especially if incarcerated, tend to experience educational underachievement and deterioration of human capital, unemployment, as well as exclusion from participation in society (The Prince’s Trust, 2007). Crime and violence therefore constitutes a serious impediment to young people’s well-being. Although it is difficult to determine whether the deprivations stem from engaging in criminal activities or whether young criminals have less favourable characteristics to begin with, it is clear that incarceration amplifies young people’s deprivations.

Incarceration or lower productivity due to crime and violence represent some of the opportunity costs. Other opportunity costs are the crime victims’ foregone earnings due to premature death or lower productivity resulting from lasting injuries of an assault. Foregone earnings consequently result in foregone tax revenues for the state. Given the youth focus of this costing framework, the victim or perpetrator have to be young.

In some countries, juvenile delinquency and violent gang activity pose serious problems to society, creating high financial costs. Victims of crime have to restore physical damage to their property and, in some cases, cope with psychological damage (e.g. enter therapy). Society assumes the costs of incarceration, as well as the legal and medical expenses due to damages or injuries to others and/or state property. High rates of crime and violence – or the perception of high rates – push victims and those afraid of becoming victims to spend on private security measures (e.g. security cameras, guards, safes, etc.). These private investments in security measures are in addition to the costs of public security. A heightened sense of insecurity also has more far-reaching consequences. Productivity can decrease at a macro level, and revenue generators, such as tourism, can drop off. These potential foregone earnings are disregarded in this exercise as their causes are difficult to attribute and the costs are difficult to quantify.

The total cost of crime and violence is the sum of the different cost elements presented below. Some of the costs are calculated over a working life. These are divided over the working life to obtain the annual costs over a lifetime. The annual costs over a lifetime and the costs only occurring in the year of observation can then be aggregated for illustrative purposes to obtain the total cost of crime and violence in the year of observation.

Table 7.12. Opportunity costs of crime and violence
Paying party | Opportunity costs
Individual | Foregone earnings (due to incarceration and due to lower productivity of the perpetrator)
Society | Foregone taxes of the perpetrator (due to lower productivity) Forgone tax revenues (due to loss of lifetime earnings and taxes of victims of youth crime)
Sources: Based on World Bank (2003), World Bank, (2004).

The perpetrators’ foregone earnings due to incarceration are one of the individual opportunity costs (. The costs due to incarceration are the median youth earnings (ey) multiplied by the number of young people in prisons (py). For simplicity, it is assumed that being incarcerated has no lasting impact on lifetime earnings.

The foregone lifetime earnings due to premature death or reduced productivity are the other individual opportunity costs (. The costs of premature death of perpetrators are approximated by the median lifetime earnings (et) multiplied by the number of young perpetrators dying (). Perpetrators’ foregone lifetime earnings due to lower productivity are calculated the same way as the foregone earnings due to substance abuse. They are the difference between the median earnings (et) and the median earnings of people with lower productivity due to reduced physical capacity due to their criminal actions (), multiplied by the number of young perpetrators with reduced physical capacity due to their criminal actions (dy). For simplicity, it is assumed that t is age 30 and that people work until retirement age.

Victims of youth crime also forego earnings due to premature death or lower productivity; these costs are part of the society’s opportunity costs (. The foregone earnings of casualties due to juvenile crime are the discounted average lifetime earnings (et), multiplied by the homicide rate due to juvenile crime (). The formula of the foregone lifetime earnings due to lower productivity of the victims is identical to the perpetrators’ formula but replacing dy with the number of victims of juvenile crime with reduced productivity (v).

Society forgoes tax revenues due to incarceration, premature death and reduced productivity. The foregone taxes of the youth prison population are the median tax payments of young people (tpy) multiplied by the number of incarcerated young people (py).

The foregone taxes from homicides are the lifetime tax payments multiplied by the homicides ( and ). The reduced tax revenues due to lower productivity follow the same logic as the reduced tax revenues due to substance abuse — multiplying that difference by the number of perpetrators (dy) and victims (v) with lower productivity.

Table 7.13. Indicators needed and data sources for opportunity cost calculations: youth crime and violence
Indicators | Data sources
Youth earnings (ey) | Household surveys, national statistics, ILO, World Bank
Number of incarcerated young people (py) | Administrative data
Earnings at age t (et) | Household surveys, national statistics, ILO, World Bank
Earnings of somebody with lower productivity resulting from youth crime at age t () | Administrative data
Number of young perpetrators dying () | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature, United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (UN-CTS)
Number of young perpetrators with reduced physical capacity due to their criminal actions (dy) | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature
Homicide rate due to juvenile crime () | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature; UN-CTS
Number of victims of juvenile crime with reduced productivity (v) | Crime Trend Survey, national surveys, scientific literature
Marginal tax rate (tx) | Administrative data

References

Assunção, J. and L. Carvalho (2003), “Brazilian Youth at Risk: Estimating the Costs of Not Preventing Risky Behavior”, Background Paper (unpublished), World Bank, Washington, DC.

Boarini, R., A. Kolev and A. McGregor (2014), “Measuring Well-being and Progress in Countries at Different Stages of Development: Towards a More Universal Conceptual Framework”, OECD Development Centre Working Papers, No. 325, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5jxss4hv2d8n-en.

Chabaan, J. (2008), The cost of youth exclusion in the Middle East, The Middle East Youth Initiative working paper, Washington DC

Chabaan, J. and W. Cunningham (2011), Measuring the Economic Gain of Investing in Girls: The Girl Effect Dividend, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Cohen, M.A. (1998), “The Monetary Value of Saving a High-Risk Youth”, Journal of Quantitative Criminology, Vol. 15/5, Springer Publishing, New York, pp. 5-33.

Eurofound (2012), NEETs – Young people not in employment, education or training: Characteristics, costs and policy responses in Europe, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg

Jütting, J. and J.R. de Laiglesia, (eds.) (2009), Is informal Normal? Towards More and Better Jobs in Developing Countries, OECD Development Centre, OECD Publishing, Paris.

Layard, R. (2005), “Happiness”, The Penguin Press, New York

Lochner, L. and E. Moretti (2004) “The Effect of Education on Criminal Activity: Evidence From

Prison Inmates, Arrests and Self-Reports”, American Economic Review, 94, 155-89.

OECD (2014), Social Cohesion Policy Review of Viet Nam, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264196155-en.

OECD (2011), How’s Life?: Measuring Well-being, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264121164-en

Prince’s Trust (2007), The cost of exclusion: Counting the cost of youth disadvantage in the UK, Prince’s Trust, London.

Smeeding, T. (2015) “Inequality and intergenerational mobility: Looking ahead, not behind” OECD, Presentation at New Approaches to Economic Challenges Seminar. Paris, France. 13 April 2015. World Bank (2008), Youth at Risk in Latin America and the Caribbean: Understanding the Causes, Realizing the Potential, Directions in Development: Human Development, World Bank, Washington, DC.

World Bank (2004), Young People in South Eastern Europe: From Risk to Empowerment, World Bank, Washington, DC.

World Bank (2003), Caribbean Youth Development: Issues and Policy Directions, World Bank, Washington, DC.

Chapter 8.

Engaging youth in policy-making processes (Module 6)

This module looks at youth participation in policy-making processes via associations (often designated as “informal participation”, which stands in contrast to traditional avenues of civic participation (e.g. voting and party affiliation). Youth participation in policy-making processes is an action-oriented process involving young people in institutions, initiatives and decisions, and affording them control over resources that affect their lives. This section describes different levels and forms of youth participation in the policy-making cycle.

Youth participation in policy-making processes is an action-oriented process involving young people in institutions, initiatives and decisions, and affording them control over resources that affect their lives (World Bank, 1994). Youth participation “includes efforts by young people to organise around issues of their choice, by adults to involve young people in community agencies, and by youth and adults to join together in intergenerational partnerships” (Checkoway, 2011). This toolkit focuses on participation in policy-making processes via youth associations (often designated “informal participation”), which stand in contrast to traditional avenues of civic participation (e.g. voting and party affiliation).

Legally, youth participation is often described as a “cluster” of rights (United Nations Children’s Fund [UNICEF], 2003). The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child refers to participation as young people’s i) right to freely express their views (Article 12); ii) freedom to seek, receive and impart information (Article 13); iii) freedom of thought, conscience and religion (Article 14); and iv) freedom of association and peaceful assembly (Article 15). Often, participation and civic engagement are used interchangeably. “Civic engagement allows people to express their voice and to contribute to the political functioning of their society” (OECD, 2011). However, active participation in politics is not an indispensable prerequisite for civic engagement; the form of civic engagement differs depending on the subject and individuals involved.

Youth participation can benefit young people’s skills development, self-perception as a citizen, as well as policy design and implementation. First, youth participation fosters transferrable non-cognitive skills and competences. Civic participation promotes young people’s “personal development, and provides them with substantive knowledge and practical skills” (Checkoway, 2011). Connecting with peers through active engagement allows young people to build social capital, an important competency for joint actions which allow achieving objectives usually beyond a single individual’s reach (OECD, 2014). Second, young people who feel that their views and needs are being included and respected develop a positive sense of self-awareness and identity, which increases resilience and well-being (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO], 2012). Through participation, young people learn to process information and build decision-making abilities. It also allows young people to understand better how government bodies work and increases public transparency and thus accountability. An improved understanding of the political and administrative machinery helps to create trust in public authorities (OECD, 2011). Third, policy makers can improve programme design and implementation by incorporating information provided by young people. Furthermore, participation increases the ownership of policies and initiatives, which is an important factor for their success (OECD, 2011).

The main barriers to youth participations are social, economic and institutional in nature. First, the prevailing societal attitude towards young people is often that they are troubled and troubling, which gives justification to “act upon them without their agreement” (Checkoway, 2011). Youth agendas set by adults who hold this opinion might focus on young people’s shortcomings and problems rather than invest in youth’s potential as a positive source of change. Discrimination based on other factors, such as gender, disability, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion or even age, can also be a barrier to participation. Second, income inequality restricts participation. Voluntary non-remunerated engagement of young people requires time, but time always has opportunity costs. When engaging civically, young people forego the opportunity of pursuing a paid activity. Not all young people can afford this, resulting in the involuntary exclusion of poorer young people, which distorts the representativeness of the active youth. Financial constraints also endanger the sustainability of youth associations. Third, employees of public institutions can lack the will or the knowledge to involve young people in processes effectively. Furthermore, there can be conflicts with the organisational culture (e.g. a very formal setting not apt for young people) and procedures (e.g. the final steps of policy design and planning may be behind closed doors).

How youth can participate

Authentic youth participation must be youth centred not youth focused and not limited to one topic (Sinclair, 2004). Youth-centred participation is rooted in their realities and follows the pursuit of youth’s visions and concerns. Youth-centred participation should be transparent, informative, voluntary, respectful, relevant, inclusive and accountable. The topics important to young people are as heterogeneous as young people themselves. Although the topics important to youth can be limitless, key issues include national youth policies, poverty-reduction strategies, education strategies, adolescent sexual and reproductive health (SRH) strategy, employment strategy, rights framework and gender policy.

The course and results of participation are strongly influenced by the characteristics of the young people taking part in it. An important ex ante question is whether the individuals participating are representing themselves or speaking on behalf of all young people. The selection process (elected to participate, self-selected or selected by adults) and the necessary skills and resources for participation can give a first answer to that question (Sinclair, 2004). Youth participation has to be carefully planned and numerous factors have to be considered, as youth participation is affected by “race, gender, age, income, education, national origin, family and community context, rural or urban residence, residential segregation, religious tradition, cultural beliefs, mass media, television watching, social science, professional practice, civic knowledge, extracurricular activities, community service, public policies, legal constraints, institutional barriers, school disparities, parental and teacher encouragement, adult attitudes, and other factors” (Checkoway, 2011). In youth-centred participation, adults still can play various roles, e.g. in engaging young people, mentoring, facilitating, coaching and building support for young people’s work by “providing connections to sources of institutional, community, and political power” (UNICEF, 2011).

Levels of participation

The level of youth participation reflects different degrees of youth involvement and roles they can assume. The “ladder of participation”, commonly referred to as the “level of participation”, classifies different intensities of youth participation and has strongly influenced scholars (Hart, 1992). This toolkit identifies four levels of participation: i) informing young people; ii) consulting young people; iii) collaborating with young people in the decision-making process; and iv) empowering young people with full autonomy (Table 8.1).

Table 8.1. Forms of youth participation

Informing | Consulting | Collaborating | Empowering

Open house

Observe youth caucus in parliament

Transparent communication by policy makers:

radio

website/on line

television

newspapers

fact sheets

Deliberative polling

Survey

Workshop

Focus group

Public comment

Public meeting

Public hearing

Youth commission/council

Co-facilitated and co-conducted consultation

Internship/fellowship programme in ministries or other public institutions

Youth advisory board

Part of the steering committee

Collaboration in research:

designing indicators and methodology

data gathering

report writing

reviewing

Youth-initiated and -led (peer) consultation

Youth-initiated and -led information campaigns

Youth parliament

Delegated decisions and implementation

Youth-organised and youth-managed small-scale programmes with full responsibility for implementation

Independent research

Sources: Lansdown, and O’Kane (2014; OECD (2011); Head, B. (2011); DFID-CSO (2010); YEN (2009); and UN DESA (2003).

The lowest level of participation is informing young people. Young people are objectively informed of policies decided by adults. Thanks to the information provided, young people understand the intentions of policies and know who took the decisions and why (Hart, 1992). Although youth’s role is passive, they still take part in the policy-making process as stakeholders who need to be informed. Further, it “can prepare the ground for working with youth as partners” (DFID-CSO, 2010).

Consultative participation can be active or passive. At this level of participation, the policy process is mainly dominated by adults, but young people’s opinions are treated seriously (Hart, 1992). Consultative participation can be either passive (initiated by decision makers) or active (initiated by young people) (YEN, 2009). Passive consultations are initiated by decision makers who lead, manage and control the process. In passive consultations, decision makers determine the timeframe and topic of consultation. In active consultations, young people are partners in the agenda setting but have no influence on the outcome. Policy makers ensure that youth contributions are “reflected in the alternatives developed and provide feedback on how public input influenced the decision” (Head, 2011).

In collaborative participation – the third level of participation – young people are active partners who share the responsibility for decision making with adults. This level of participation is still mainly initiated by adults, but young people can take self-directed actions, and influence and challenge processes and outcomes (Lansdown and O’Kane, 2014). Young people are partners in formulating solutions, and their advice and recommendations are incorporated. Compared to lower levels of participation, young people need more experience and maturity to be effective partners. Being collaborative partners also trains young people to become leaders.

Empowering youth with full autonomy is the highest possible level of participation, placing the “final decision making in the hands” of young people (Head, 2011). At this level of participation, young people have the role of leaders. Young people take initiatives and conduct projects on issues they identified themselves. Spaces within existing structures, systems and processes are open for youth-led decision making (DFID-CSO, 2010). Adults are either providers of organisational backing or are not involved at all, limiting themselves to a role of observers (Shier, 2010).

Forms of participation

The forms or ways of participation differ according to the level of participation (Table 8.1). The lowest level of participation (informing) is limited to communication strategies. Authorities give young people the opportunity to inform themselves and understand policies and decisions. To achieve this, policy makers have multiple forms of communication, for example through spots, interviews and discussions on radio, television, newspapers or on line. They can open their houses to the general public on specific days, giving young people the opportunity to access policy makers in person. Young people can also be given the opportunity to observe youth caucuses in parliaments.

Through the different forms of consultation, policy makers recognise the value of youth opinions for policy making. Meaningful consultations need an adequate timeframe for young people to express their opinions and for decision makers to analyse, integrate and give feedback to the comments (OECD, 2011). Youth can be consulted via deliberative polls, surveys, workshops, focus group discussions, public comments, public meetings, public hearings and national youth councils (Box 8.1).

Box 8.1. National youth councils (NYCs): What are they and how do they work?

NYCs are umbrella organisations that represent and co-ordinate youth organisations across the country. NYCs consist of organisations with different interests, activities and local coverage. Many different types of NYC structures exist, and “no one type of structure is best for all youth organisations as it is in the hand of each organisation to define and design the structure that best fits to their mission and goals” (European Youth Forum, 2014). Some NYCs follow a hierarchical and linear chain of decision making, whereas others adopt a more horizontal architecture. Similarly, decisions can be based on consensus, majority rule or on a more top-down approach.

Ideally the NYC’s status, structure, leadership, functioning and role are stipulated in national youth law. The structure of a NYC is described in their status, which defines how the council functions and who makes legitimate decisions (Figure 8.1 depicts a typical structure of a NYC). Transparent and clear procedures are essential to ensure the legitimacy of the decision-making process. The presence of a broad range of founding youth organisations contributes to the representativeness of the umbrella organisation. This founding group is responsible for facilitating the process of establishing a NYC and can comprise different kinds of stakeholders, including youth NGOs, young leaders, student organisations, youth wing political parties, young politicians, local youth councils and also governments. In the majority of cases, youth organisations play the main role in setting up NYCs, although student councils and individual young leaders with enough influence in different political and interest groups often play a prominent role in establishing NYCs.

One major challenge of NYCs is representativeness of the membership. Is the council meant to be a government co-ordinating body, a voice of organisations for youth or the voice of young people themselves? Should NYCs accept individual youth or only organisations? Should they accept representatives of governments? Should religious organisations have right of membership? Should they include youth wings of political parties, considering that they are more articulate and therefore likely to swamp non-political NGOs (Ewen, 1994)? Membership criteria will reflect the response to these questions.

Figure 8.1. General structure of NYCs

For example, in Moldova, the National Youth Council is an umbrella organisation for youth civil society. Forty-five youth organisations are members of the NYC, whose structure comprises a general assembly, a board (elected for two years), a secretariat, as well as a census commission, which monitors finances and procedures. The Moldovan NYC represents youth civil society, promotes exchanges among youth organisations and acts as a bridge between national and international youth organisations. The NYC’s main areas of intervention are youth policy, formal and non-formal education, youth employment, youth rights, as well as youth capacity building. Based on the Moldovan National Youth Strategy, the NYC develops its own action plan with diverse activities. The NYC conducts research and provides consultation services to its members. It also offers to members and non-members capacity-building training on institutional development, project management, financial management and good governance.

As an institutional representative of Moldovan youth, the NYC influences legislation and youth policies. The NYC is part of an inter-ministerial commission on youth, which is chaired by the Prime Minister and consists of three civil society representatives and three government representatives. In biannual meetings, the commission discusses youth policies and issues non-binding recommendations. The NYC further influences youth policies through non-institutionalised channels. The NYC is regularly consulted by different ministries on youth-related issues and frequently participates in ministerial working groups. These bilateral relationships between the NYC and line ministries depend on each ministry’s stance on youth participation. For instance, the NYC contributes to the drafting of the Ministry of Health’s Health Code, or the NYC collaborated with the Agency of Transportation on the extension of public transportation hours. Generally, the NYC takes positions on every major policy impacting young people.

The most active collaboration is when young people are involved in the planning, implementation and monitoring of policies and programmes. This can be achieved through internship or fellowship programmes. Young people can be active in implementing and delivering services. They can be the face of the programme, e.g. as peer educators or in communicating with young programme beneficiaries. With their hands-on knowledge of youth issues, young people can collaborate in research by assisting the design of indicators and methodology, data gathering, report writing or the review process. Young people can be equal partners in steering committees and advisory boards.

Empowering youth with full autonomy is a challenging form of participation in policy making. In large-scale national programmes, only certain decisions and implementation aspects can be entrusted to young people. In smaller scale community programmes, young people can act more autonomously. Young people can, for example, organise and manage the implementation of programmes that were planned in collaboration with adult decision makers. The easiest form of autonomous participation is enabling young people to initiate and lead information campaigns, consultations and research. In this process, young people can assess their situation and the functioning of programmes and, consequently, elaborate policy and implementation proposals that are then presented to policy makers (Lansdown and O’Kane, 2014). Youth parliaments also give young people autonomy and raise awareness about the functions and procedures of parliaments. Although actual decision power is limited due to legal and political frameworks, youth parliaments are important participatory institutions for youth to discuss policies autonomously, and they can assume a democratic “consultative function for youth-relevant issues” (UNDP, 2013). The representatives elected by young people should have the competencies to “determine priorities and manage their own agendas” (UN DESA, 2003). In some countries, youth parliaments even have shadow ministers who follow the work of national ministries.

Engaging youth in the policy cycle

Youth participation includes young people in each step of the policy cycle: i) analysis of the situation; ii) policy design and planning; iii) implementation; iv) monitoring and evaluation; v) and advocacy and participatory debate that feeds back into ongoing situation analysis (Figure 8.2).

Figure 8.2. The policy cycle

Source: Authors’ own elaboration.

Over the policy cycle, the forms and levels of participation differ. Although youth participation is a valuable and desirable process, legal and political frameworks may impede young people from engaging in all steps at all levels. Moreover, in practice, youth participation is never limited to only one step or one form of participation. The following examples represent common forms and levels of participation in each step of the policy cycle. Young people commonly make valuable contributions to shaping policies in the analysis of the situation, monitoring and evaluation, as well as advocacy. Designing and planning policies leaves little room for young people to act autonomously due, among other reasons, to their lack of knowledge, experience and democratic legitimisation. Young people can, however, collaborate in the implementation of services.

Youth involvement in the situation analysis phase: Sri Lanka national youth parliament

The Sri Lankan Youth Parliament has 335 members; 500 000 members of youth organizations and clubs across Sri Lanka elect them in district-wide polls. Twice a month, youth parliamentarians meet in the capital and debate relevant issues, shadowing the work of the national Parliament. Thirty youth ministers follow national ministries and have working space there. Youth parliamentarians can enter the committees of the national Parliament and consult national members. Youth are included in national decision making and learn about electoral processes. The national Parliament has included the youth parliament’s recommendations in the national youth policy (UNDP, 2013).

Sri Lanka’s national youth parliament is a good example of young people autonomously participating in the first step of the policy cycle (situation analysis) and being consulted in the second step (policy design and planning). It includes young people in national decision making in a representative way and enjoys strong political support in Sri Lanka.

Youth involvement in the policy design and planning phase: Youth consultations in Viet Nam’s poverty-reduction strategy

Viet Nam’s government, in developing their poverty reduction strategy (PRSP), commissioned an NGO (Save the Children) to conduct three consultations with children and young people in particularly poor urban areas over the course of five years. The purpose of the consultations was to feed into the formulation of the strategy, and to provide opportunities for young people and children to review the implementation of the strategy. The first assessment in 1999, before PRSPs existed, was to inform national development planning […]. The second consultation in 2001 sourced feedback on the interim PRSP and policy for the PRSP. The third consultation in 2003 was part of a review of progress on the implementation of the country’s first PRSP.” (DFID-CSO, 2010).

Young people were consulted in numerous ways: surveys, discussion groups, interviews and participatory workshops. In this process, young people had two roles. They responded to surveys as beneficiaries, and some were partners in facilitating the consultations by acting as peer educators. Consultations with adults were run in parallel but in a separate and independent environment to maintain a youth-friendly space in which young people could act and freely express themselves according to their capacity without fearing adult judgment.

This consultative process created awareness among policy makers about young people’s situation, highlighted forms of youth deprivation the extent of which was previously unregistered, and taught local officials how to enlist youth participation to improve the formulation of policies. One criticism was that participants came mainly from the capital city and surroundings. Nonetheless, as a result of this consultative process, Viet Nam’s PRSP has greater reference to young people.

Youth involvement in the delivery of programmes: Angolan youth on STI awareness

The example of young Angolans educating and counselling peers on HIV/AIDS shows how youth can implement and deliver services. The youth developed and implemented community education activities that succeeded in raising awareness about STIs among young people and in revealing unmet needs.

UNICEF trained youth-run civil society organisations in peer-to-peer education, interpersonal communication, project planning and monitoring and evaluation (UNICEF, 2004). The training manual was elaborated in collaboration with young people. Empowered by the training courses provided by UNICEF, young peer educators elaborated different ways to transmit the messages on HIV/AIDS prevention to the target groups. The different approaches included community theatre, which was performed wherever young people congregate (e.g. schools, markets, restaurants and health centres). Other strategies included engaging with key informants and leaders for young Angolans (the military, military police, traditional leaders and healers, lorry drivers and parents) to increase awareness about the transmission of HIV/AIDS.

Peer-to-peer exchanges revealed the lack of recreational and vocational opportunities for young people. This resulted in UNICEF, together with donor organisations, funding the creation of youth information and recreation centres. Peer educators also discovered that condoms should be distributed at a nominal price, as the free provision led young people to believe they are of no value and use.

Youth involvement in monitoring and evaluation: Youth collecting data in Uganda

Uganda’s Youth Empowerment Programme trains young people in qualitative and quantitative research methods to collect data to monitor and evaluate programmes on SRH, livelihoods and conflict resolution. After initial training, young people pre-tested the monitoring and evaluation tools in order to improve their design (DFID-CSO, 2010). The improved tools allowed young people to monitor the programmes in the field. As part of their collaboration in the programme evaluation process, they surveyed peers on knowledge, attitudes and practices.

Young people’s participation improved both the data collection and the programme training itself. Important lessons were to adjust training to local youth realities and to afford more time for the training. The youth’s contribution helped to rephrase the surveys in youth-friendly language and to reach out-of-school and marginalised young people. Their contribution to more youth-friendly data collection methods helped to gather valuable data, which in turn helped to improve the identification of targeted beneficiaries of the programme. Ultimately, the productive collaboration of young people gave young people an increased voice and influence within the Youth Empowerment Programme.

How to set up effective youth participation

The pathway to youth participation in policy-making processes has three stages (Shier, 2001). The first stage is opening up to working with youth and embedding the “awareness that involvement is desirable” (Head, 2011). The second is creating opportunities to work with young people. Opportunities are created by funding the endeavours adequately and endowing adults and youth alike with skills and knowledge (Shier, 2001). The third stage is making working with young people an obligation; in other words, it becomes the norm.

A prerequisite to opening up opportunities to work with youth is building their knowledge and skills (Box 8.2). Participation in the policy-making process requires basic knowledge of politics, policies and negotiations (‘the rules of the game’). The required skills are cognitive (citizenship education) but especially non-cognitive (communication and negotiation skills). Young people should be trained to formulate their messages clearly and to use communication tools effectively. Governments can impart knowledge and skills to young people directly by introducing citizenship education into school curricula and indirectly by creating an enabling environment for civil society organisations (Kolev and Giorgi, 2011).

Box 8.2. Skills and competences for active participation in policy making processes

Active participation in policy making processes demands certain skills and competences. In order to train young people, foster participation and determine the best level and form, it is important to understand the skills and competences young people possess. The set of skills and competences needed for successful participation in the policy making process can be grouped into under i) political literacy; ii) democratic attitudes and values; and iii) critical thinking (Table 8.2). Political literacy refers to the basic knowledge needed to understand ‘the rules of the game’. The foundation of any participation and consensus is that young people share democratic attitudes and values. Finally, young people have to be able to think and act critically, and to clearly communicate clearly their opinions and ideas.

Table 8.2. Skills and competences needed for active youth participation in policy making processes

Political literacy | Democratic attitudes and values | Critical thinking

Basic understanding of concepts of democracy

Awareness of their rights and duties as citizens

Knowledge of basic laws, political rights and democratic institutions

Understanding of the role of political parties and, interest groups

Knowledge about how to influence policy development

Responsibility

Social justice

Human rights

Respect and acceptance

Identity

Diversity

Conflict resolution

Ability to collect information from different sources

Ability to analyse, interpret and judge information

Communication skills for a political discussion

Ability to take a position based on prior critical analysis

Source: Based on European Youth Forum (2002).

To endow young people with the adequate set of skills and competences, it is important to understand how and where these are formed. The requisites for active participation are acquired in the family, at school, in non-formal education and through “life-wide learning” in informal environments (European Youth Forum, 2002). All of these social institutions and social norms pave young people’s way to participate actively. Family, religious institutions, associations, peers and role models strongly influence active participation. Schools shape young people and endow them with many of the above-mentioned skills through its curriculum and practices (e.g. its ethos, organisation, extra-curricular activities and operational structure). Qualitative research can provide valuable information on i) the role of these social institutions in empowering and providing skills to young people; ii) the methods they use to motivate active participation; and iii) how effective they are in endowing and motivating young people. The results of such research can guide policy makers who wish to develop strategies to improve and widen young people skills and competences for active participation.

Meaningful youth participation needs political and institutional support at each level of participation. Support is best assured if youth participation is seen as an obligation. The cultural change needed to adopt that view can be encouraged by building strategic alliances with youth networks and civil society organisations, strengthening youth wings of political parties, and legislators representing youth (UNFPA, 2007). Aligning “the minimum voting age with the minimum age of eligibility to run for office” and introducing youth quotas in electoral laws can support this cultural change (UNDP, 2013). Quotas can stipulate youth be included on party lists or seats be reserved for youth in the parliament. This way, young people have genuine representatives in politics, with the power to enforce the obligation to work with young people.

Based on existing literature (ActionAid, 2015; Lansdown and O’Kane, 2014; DFID-CSO, 2010; IPPF, 2008; Sinclair, 2004; and Shier, 2001), this section provides policy makers and researchers with guidelines on how to let young people take part in the policy making process. The guidelines are structured as questions that help researchers analyse the institutional framework for youth participation and help policy makers structure youth participation. Before deciding on the best form of youth participation, authorities have to prepare the ground. First, the political and institutional support for youth inclusion has to be assessed and eventually created. Second, authorities have to be clear on the purpose of including young people in the policy cycle. Third, before choosing the form of participation, the ideal level of participation has to be determined. This section closes with key recommendations for successful youth participation in the policy-making process.

Assess political and institutional support for youth participation

To institutionalise youth participation may require internal changes in government bodies. Authorities need to pave the way to institutionalise youth participation processes in the policy cycle. Every authority, agency and organisation with the intention of including young people in the policy making process has to assess its capacity before planning any form of youth participation. These questions are intended to guide that assessment:

Is the right for youth to participate included in guidelines, national laws or the constitution?

Does the authority’s staff value young people’s contributions and take them into consideration?

Is the authority’s staff trained in working with young people (e.g. using language easily understood by young people)?

Is the authority ready to support youth participation actively? Are there already forms of youth participation in place? Do young people have access to resources needed for participation?

Has the authority allocated budget and staff to ensure, oversee, develop and sustain youth participation?

Does the authority recognise youth participation as a long-term commitment?

Is the authority prepared to build in changes long term (not just as a one-off undertaking)?

Determine the purpose of youth participation in policy making

Once a favourable environment for youth participation is created, authorities must have a clear vision of the purpose of youth participation in policy making. These questions are intended to guide the definition of the vision at any given step of the policy cycle:

Which policy areas can benefit most from youth participation?

What is the authority aiming to achieve by youth participation?

Which step of the policy cycle best allows achieving the determined aim?

Is it appropriate for young people to participate in this particular step of the policy cycle?

Why were young people not included before?

What structures exist to let young people take part?

Choose the level and form of participation

The selection of young people and counterparts in the authority can have a strong influence on the appropriate level and form of participation. The skills, knowledge and experiences of participating young people and adults can exclude or favour certain levels and forms of participation. These questions can help to obtain a first insight in the participants’ capacities (see also Box 8.2):

Which group of young people shall be included in the participatory process?

How can the authority make contact with the targeted group of young people?

Do the selected young people need any training to participate effectively? If so, will the authority build the necessary capacities?

With whom in the authority should the young people collaborate?

Does the authority’s staff need additional training to collaborate with the selected young people? If so, will the authority train its staff?

The level of participation can be determined by understanding where the authority is in the three-stage process. The authority has to be open to youth participation, has to have (or create) opportunities to include young people, and has to feel the obligation to do so (Shier, 2001). The questions in Table 8.3 help to understand the stage of the authority within each level of participation.

Table 8.3. Guiding questions to determine the level of youth participation
| Opening | Opportunity | Obligation
Consultation | Is the authority ready to take youth’s views into account and let them influence the debate, design, implementation or analysis of policies? | Do the authority’s internal processes enable taking young people’s views into account in the debate, design, implementation or analysis of policies? | Is there a requirement that youth’s views must be given due weight in policy making?
Collaboration | Is the authority ready to let youth join in decision-making processes? | Is there a procedure that enables youth to join policy-making processes? | Is it a requirement that youth must be involved in decision-making processes?
Autonomy | Is the authority prepared to share (or even give up) some power? | Is there a procedure that enables youth and adults to share power and responsibility for policy-making processes? | Is it a requirement that youth and adults share power and responsibility for policy-making processes?
Source: Based on Shier, H. (2001).

The exact form of participation can be decided after determining the purpose and level of participation in a given step of the policy cycle. The answers to earlier questions in this subsection and earlier examples of successful youth participation help authorities in selecting the appropriate form of participation from Table 8.1.

Key recommendations for successful youth participation

Among multiple factors, successful youth participation depends on the participants themselves and their capacities, purpose, resources and expectations. The following list of selected key recommendations for successful youth participation is aimed to help authorities include young people, irrespective of the form, level of participation or step in the policy cycle (IPPF, 2008):

Have clear expectations on the purpose and possibilities of youth participation.

Provide training and support for young people.

Provide training and support for adult decision makers to help them engage with young people and listen to their views.

Provide young people with jargon-free information that is accessible to them.

Ensure hard-to-reach groups of young people are aware of and encouraged to be part of projects. Consider their specific needs.

Ensure meetings are accessible (times and locations).

Make participation voluntary and do not expect long-term commitment.

Allow adequate time for participation (to mature).

Value the input of young people; take their views seriously and give clear feedback on the impact of their contribution.

Manage the expectations of young people. Ensure clear and transparent communication about the limits of their involvement.

Make sure there is the necessary financial commitment to youth participation.

Set up systems for reviewing and continuously improving the process.

Recognise young people’s contribution and input (e.g. a certificate of achievement).

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