6 Facts on Youth Unemployment: A Turkey-Sized Problem
The global economy is recovering — but young people are still getting left behind.
November 25, 2014
1. In 2013, 74.5 million young people (aged 15-24) around the world were classified as unemployed.
2. Young people disproportionately bore the brunt of the recessions that followed the global financial crisis in 2008.
3. The global rate of youth unemployment (13.1%) in 2013 was almost three times higher than the worldwide unemployment rate for adults (4.6%).
4. The youth unemployment rates in North Africa and the Middle East are – at 29.4% and 27.2%, respectively – more than double the global rate.
5. Lack of work opportunities for the young has been cited by some experts as fueling radicalization and political instability.
The Upshot
The global total of unemployed young people is almost the same as the entire population of Turkey (74.9 million), the world’s 18th most-populous country.
Data source: Global Employment Trends 2014, International Labor Organization. Analysis by The Globalist Research Center.
Takeaways
Young people disproportionately bore the brunt of the recessions that followed the global financial crisis in 2008.
Youth unemployment rates in North Africa and the Middle East are more than double the global rate.
The global total of unemployed young people is almost the same as the entire population of Turkey.
