Innovations in Civic Participation and the MasterCard Foundation Partner on Research Study Focused on National Youth Service Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa

Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP) and The MasterCard Foundation are undertaking a research study to assess how National Youth Service (NYS) programs in Sub-Saharan Africa can better prepare young people for the workforce.  The study, titled “National Youth Service in Sub-Saharan Africa: Strengthening NYS as a Strategy for Youth Employability, Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Livelihoods”, will produce greater knowledge on how NYS programs can be designed as a youth development and employment tool, build a network of NYS staff, policy makers and practitioners focused on youth employment, and provide recommendations for private sector engagement. 
 
ICP will work with VOSESA, a nonprofit research organization in South Africa, to develop four resource documents:  a report on the National Youth Service landscape in Sub-Saharan Africa; a report on promising practices for programming for youth employability through service within and outside Sub-Saharan Africa; case-studies of NYS program design and implementation in Kenya, Ghana and South Africa; and a report synthesizing findings.   The findings will be discussed at a learning forum in August 2013 with key NYS practitioners and stakeholders from the region.

This project stems from an existing tradition of NYS programs in Sub-Saharan Africa, which were originally designed to cultivate a sense of national identity and mobilize skills for development in post-independence nations. Today, NYS programs operate in the context of a deepening regional youth unemployment crisis, which averages over 20 per cent, according to African Economic Outlook. NYS programs engage hundreds of thousands of young people each year and have the potential to equip them with strong civic skills and prepare them for employment and livelihood opportunities. Despite its potential as an economic strategy, little is still known about how effective NYS programs are at increasing youth employability. 
 
Susan Stroud, founder and Executive Director of ICP and a leader in the field of youth civic engagement, comments on the importance of the study and partnership with The MasterCard Foundation: “National Youth Service programs throughout the region are a set of institutions that capture large numbers of young men and women for an extended period of time.  Governments are investing significant resources in NYS programs at a time when they are also very concerned about the high unemployment rates of young people in their countries.  If NYS programs can be designed and implemented in a more intentional way to serve as pathways to employment and livelihoods, governments will realize a much better return on their investments.  However, we lack critical information about NYS programs in the region and promising practices that link youth service with employability that could be shared with practitioners and policymakers.  This partnership provides a much-needed evidence-base to inform future NYS practice and policy.” 
 
“This study will highlight opportunities for collaboration between NYS staff, policy makers, youth employment practitioners, and the private sector,” says Deepali Khanna, Director of Youth Learning at The MasterCard Foundation. “It will be an important resource for understanding how to effectively link NYS programs to emerging market opportunities".

About Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP)
Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP) is a nonprofit organization that facilitates the development of innovative, high-quality youth civic engagement programs and policies around the world. We believe that well-structured youth service programs provide innovative solutions to social and environmental issues, while helping young people develop skills for future employment and active citizenship. ICP aims to build a world where young people in every nation are actively engaged in improving their lives and their communities through civic participation.

About the MasterCard Foundation
The MasterCard Foundation advances microfinance and youth learning to promote financial inclusion and prosperity. Through collaboration with committed partners in 49 countries, the Foundation is helping people living in poverty to access opportunities to learn and prosper. An independent foundation based in Toronto, Canada, it was established through the generosity of MasterCard Worldwide at the time of the company’s initial public offering in 2006.

Contact information:
Carrie Bodley-Bond, Program Officer
Innovations in Civic Participation
Phone: 202-775-0290
Email: [email protected]
www.icicp.org