Emilie, MA International Development and Globalization
Country of fieldwork: Côte d'Ivoire
Canadian NGO: UNAC
Local NGO: UNDP
Three weeks into my internship, I am having a hard time digesting all the information about the socio-political and economic realities of the country, how the project on which I’ll be working ties into these realities, the UN’s structure, its mandate, what the country is doing to improve its HDI score, the challenges to development… all in addition to having to adjust to the seemingly mundane tasks of daily life.
What started as an attempt to clear my mind at the beach one weekend became a disheartening reality check when I had the opportunity to chat with a young soccer player who is currently waiting for the results of a competition in China to play on their team. At only 22 years old, he became the main caretaker for his two younger siblings, as both parents were not longer present. His ability to take care of his siblings depends on the opportunities he lands internationally. While his career seems to give him exciting opportunities abroad, domestically, the economic reality is quite stark.
On another occasion, a young Yango (local Uber) driver talks about how he is educated, has a post-secondary degree in business, but how he is unable to get his foot in the labour market. His uncle, with a master’s degree in IT, also struggles to find a job in his field. He concludes the very few formal, secure job opportunities that do exist are gatekept by the rich and powerful.
There seems to be a trend in the discussions I am having with youth (those under 35 years old) who make up 75% of the population in the country, and the statistics support the lived realities. The unemployment rate of youth aged 15 to 34 is over twice as high as the national average. This is, unfortunately, only one side of the problem. Many of the youth who are employed face precarious working conditions in the informal economy, often taking volatile jobs below their qualifications. It is also worth noting that I am based in the economic centre of Côte d’Ivoire, where most of the formal employment opportunities are located. Yet, the people I meet here are still struggling to find appropriate work.
A lot of the theory we learn in the classroom discusses investment in human capital in the from of education, training, entrepreneurship and skills building…However, what is being observed in Côte d’Ivoire is an economy not yet diversified enough to absorb its own skilled labour force. Unemployment, as well as underemployment, continues then to be a big challenge as younger generations reach the age of participation in the local economy. Furthermore, the data presented by the UNDP during the launch of the 2025 Human Development Report in Côte d’Ivoire, which I had the opportunity to attend, confirmed a troubling paradox: the more educated the youth, the more likely they are to be unemployed. In 2023, unemployment among educated youth reached 12.4%, compared to just 1.3% among those without formal education.
What happens when the job market is not ready to receive the skills and talent of motivated youth that are eagerly waiting for opportunities and change? – potentially a lot of disillusionment, rebellion, and trouble. Yet I am surprised to see that there is a lot of hope and resilience built into the social fabric here, likely due to the strong presence of different religious faiths.
However, I think that mere hope and faith, as much as it can help to move through unfavourable political and economic situations, are not fair placeholders for concrete change. People deserve to see improvement in their living situations – they deserve to have more than the hope of a better future.
This internship has made me reflect on the structural barriers that prevent economic participation of the largest segment of the population. I do believe that even though programs and partnerships at the grassroots level are necessary to reveal the needs of the people, there must be better policies to create an enabling environment that is receptive to structural change, especially in the field of technology and artificial intelligence, which is what many of the UNDP programs and projects target. There is so much potential in tech savvy youth to contribute to the development of their beautiful country that is rich in natural resources and agricultural produce. But how can the country enter and upgrade in global value chains and make use of the skilled labour that exists but is not being absorbed by the current market? How can it diversify its agriculture export-based economy with finished consumer products instead of importing the latter from other countries? In the next few months, I will get to work on a project that aims to promote the economic empowerment of young people in Côte d’Ivoire by strengthening their entrepreneurial potential and equipping them with the skills needed to participate in the local and global economy.