Zambia
Strategies for youth employment
- Strategies for youth employment
- Yes
Youth employment strategy planned in the next 2 years
- Discussions within the government
- No
- Consultations with national-level stakeholders (e.g. employers’ and workers’ associations, youth councils, etc.)
- No
- A draft strategy already exists
- Yes
- Other (please specify)
- No
Countries with national action plans for youth employment
- Monitoring framework (timeline and activity/outcome indicators, e.g. youth labour market indicators)
- Yes
- Funding (indicative budget to implement the plan)
- Yes
- Institutional responsibilities (e.g. ministries/agencies in charge of specific planned activities )
- Yes
- Other, specify
- No
Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- Yes
Additional information:
Ministry of Finance and National DevelopmentYouth in the national development / employment strategy
- Youth in the national development / employment strategy
- Yes
Additional information:
- Eighth National Development Plan 2022 - 2026 - National Employment and Labour Market PolicyCountries with national goals for youth employment
- Countries with national goals for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
Youth employment in Zambia remains a significant challenge, driven by a growing youth population entering the labor market amid limited formal sector opportunities. A large proportion of young people are engaged in informal employment - particularly in agriculture and small-scale trade - where incomes are low and job security is lacking. In response, the government has implemented initiatives such as the Youth Empowerment Fund and vocational training programs aimed at addressing unemployment and closing skills gaps. The National Youth Policy (2024) and its Implementation Plan (2024–2028) clearly define the country’s national goals to promote youth employment, emphasizing entrepreneurship, skills development, and job creation.Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- Yes
Policy areas in national youth employment strategies
- Macroeconomic and Sectoral policies
- No
- Enterprise Development
- Yes
- Education, Training and skills development
- Yes
- Labour Demand
- No
- Labour Law and Legislation
- No
- Labour Market Policies
- No
- Other (please specify)
- No
Social partners' inclusion in the youth employment strategy
- Workers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- Fully involved
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- Fully involved
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- Fully involved
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- Fully involved
- Employers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- Fully involved
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- Fully involved
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- Fully involved
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- Fully involved
Youth-led organizatios' inclusion in the national strategy
- Fully involved
- Yes
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- No
- Consulted
- No
- Informed
- No
- Not involved
- No
Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
UNESCO UNDP UNFPA UNICEFInclusiveness of vulnerable groups in national strategies
- Women
- No
- Migrant Workers
- No
- NEETs
- Yes
- People with disabilities
- Yes
- Low skilled workers
- Yes
- Rural workers
- Yes
- Other (please specify)
- No
Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- Yes
Additional information:
2023: UNDP _________ 2020: ILO support to government, workers and employers’ organisation. Development of National Youth Policy and its action plan Development of National Employment Policies Development of Internship Programmes and their guidelines Capacity building for tracking Labour statistics to inform decision making Awareness raising on Child Labour Awareness raising on Social Protection including support to the informal workers