Development and the Next Generation: Europe and Central Asia


World Development Report 2007

Lead Authors: Emmanuel Jimenez and Mamta Murthi
September 2006
This year's World Development Report focuses on the extraordinary number of youth in developing countries. Their surging numbers represent opportunities for countries that invest in education, health care and job training. But failure to train young people effectively for the workplace and transform them into active citizens could lead to widespread disillusionment and social tensions.

In Europe and Central Asia (Eastern Europe, Turkey and the Former Soviet Union), the story is slightly different. There, unlike in other regions, the number of youth has peaked and is set to decline. However, patterns vary across countries, with youth populations set to grow significantly in countries where fertility remains high (Turkey, Tajikistan).

Despite these demographic trends, investment in young people is still extremely important because of long term effects on economic and social development, but also because of heightened expectations and exposure of the young. In Armenia, young people accounted for 50 percent of internet users, while in Kyrgyzstan, they accounted for 61 percent.

The report provides policy recommendations along three main axes.

1. Expand opportunities by filling gaps in education, employment and civic participation

  • In 2000, more than about 60 percent of unemployed youth remained jobless for more than six months in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and the Slovak Republic.
  • In Bosnia and Herzegovina, despite the end of the civil conflict in the late 1990s, young people face high unemployment. In 2004, the unemployment rate was 62 percent for those 15-19 years old, and 37 percent for those 20-24.
  • Even as young people remain unemployed there are skills shortages. The World Bank's investment climate surveys show that more than a fifth of all firms in developing countries (including Latvia) rate inadequate skills and education of workers as a major or severe obstacle to their operations.
  • With the exception of the Visegrad countries (Poland, Hungary, Czech and Slovak Republics) 15-year olds fall behind in reading, mathematics and problem solving skills relative to rich countries.
  • Young people -- less embedded in older patronage and exchange networks than adults -- have already been heavily involved in political reforms in the region. In Serbia, the Otpor youth movement played a key role in removing Milosevic from power by thwarting attempts to annul elections. Much more can be done to prepare young people for citizenship.

Priorities:

  • Improve the quality of basic education. Early investment in nutrition, health, and psychosocial development has long-term benefits. In Turkey, enriched childcare and preschool programs led to higher achievement test scores and high school graduation rates, and lower crime rates for participants well into their twenties.
  • Improve the quality of post-primary education and its relevance to work. In many countries, secondary curriculum is not relevant to the social and economic needs of students and tends to be fragmented, over-loaded and based on factual content. Tertiary education curricula have many of the same problems.
  • Reform measures introduced in Georgia to fight corruption in higher education illustrate the effectiveness of combining a unified examination system, control mechanisms, and improved transparency.
  • Address labor market regulations that restrict job access for newcomers/youth. In economically depressed regions of Poland, the relatively high minimum wage discourages the employment of young people. 
  • Make migration, especially temporary migration, easier. Migration by some young people can improve job prospects for those left behind, a safety valve in times of high unemployment. Over 10 percent of the workforce in Albania and Turkey is abroad; studies show that these large outflows increase wages and job prospects of those left behind.
  • Create more opportunities for civic participation. Slovenia brings local youth representatives together at the national level. In 2005, Moldova had youth councils in a quarter of the country's localities. The report warns that compulsory military service has mixed effects on young people's civic engagement. In Russia, poor, low-educated, and rural households were much more likely to have sons drafted, losing about 15 percent of annual income in their lifetime.

2. Recognize young people as decision-makers and expand information and support to improve their decisions

  • Availability of information on health is sometimes limited.
  • An environment that encourages tobacco consumers in the region to quit is still lacking, including a tobacco control policy that also treats tobacco dependence. More than a quarter of 15-24 year-old men in Armenia smoke regularly.

Priorities:

  • Give young people legal identity. Basic identification documents are often crucial for access to services. They are also needed to enter the formal labor market.
  • Provide young people with more information on health risks, on job opportunities and careers.
    School-based career guidance services have shown promise in Poland, Russia, Romania, and Turkey in retaining young people in school and guiding their choice of further education options. Success depends on quality of information available to counselors - so train the trainers well.
  • While many countries offer students information on HIV prevention and reproductive health, only a few educate them on dangers of tobacco use, alcohol and substance abuse, and risk of obesity - all important for young people.
  • Help young people command resources. Scholarships targeted at those with merit and need are more sustainable and equitable than notionally free tertiary education to which only the rich have access.
  • Help young people become capable decision makers. Young people consulted by the World Bank in Georgia set the teaching of decision-making skills as a priority.

3. Give young people "second chances"

  • Treatment can reduce social problems -- including crime, violence and incarceration -- and societal costs. Many former Soviet Union countries are introducing methadone maintenance therapy and needle and syringe exchange programs, which have been shown to also reduce the risk of HIV infection.
  • Improve design of wage subsidies and targeting of employment support programs. In the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland, youth-specific wage subsidies can be of particular benefit if targeted to the most disadvantaged, with low-education females benefiting most.
  • For young offenders, avoid disproportionately harsh penalties and incarceration with hardened criminals. Consider restorative justice rather than retributive justice.

Data & Figures


Interview with Author

Related Links