The unemployment rate of young men (aged 15 24) was 16.9 in 2003, and the figure for young women was 26 .

Young people are particularly vulnerable to unemployment.

Forty per cent of youths (15 24 years) were unemployed.

It plans for employment of 1,000 young unemployed persons.

The sharp increase in youth unemployment (38 million young people half of the world's jobless youth) and the implications of the tsunami disaster represent new development challenges for the region.

In 2000, the unemployment rate for young males aged 15 24 was 15.7 the rate for women was 16.8 .

The Council reaffirms the urgency of finding lasting solutions to the problem of youth unemployment in order to prevent the recruitment of such youth by illegal armed groups.

Youth unemployment rates are typically two to three times higher than for others, and young women are particularly at risk.

First, as regards youth and employment, in our National Youth Development Strategy to the Year 2010, which was approved by the Government in 2003, unemployment was identified as the biggest difficulty currently facing our young people.

Youth unemployment remains one of our greatest challenges.

Youth unemployment worldwide has increased during the past decade.

Youth unemployment was particularly high (40 per cent) among 15 to 24 year olds.

There are over 88 million youth unemployed worldwide and millions more who are underemployed.

The challenges include 200 million youth living in poverty 130 million youth illiterate 88 million unemployed and 10 million young people living with HIV AIDS.

18.11 The region is suffering from low rates of economic growth and investment, resulting in high unemployment rates, particularly among youth.

In order to further reduce unemployment among young people in the country, the Government has established the National Youth Fund, which is aimed at assisting the country's young people with funding to establish small scale enterprises.

As one positive response to addressing youth unemployment at home, we are pleased to be one of the latest countries to join the Youth Employment Network as a lead country.

Young people have the highest rates of unemployment and are in many ways the most vulnerable to the social depredations caused by unemployment and poverty.

However, young persons in many parts of the world still face unemployment and underemployment.

We pay due attention to all matters concerning youth, particularly the unemployed segment of our young population.

UN Habitat programmes with those partners will concentrate on addressing youth unemployment and youth at risk in urban areas.

Employment growth is simply not keeping up with this population surge, at least not in the sense of decent jobs with decent wages. The unemployment rate for young people (15 24 years old) in North Africa and the Middle East is 30 or more.

However, if Governments employ specific programmes to promote youth employment and entrepreneurship at the national level, we will succeed in significantly reducing youth unemployment.

Initiatives to address youth unemployment include tax incentives for companies to hire youth, financial assistance for self employment, job search centres, voluntary service programmes and training courses.

In the context of combating unemployment, training youth in various crafts and professions and providing opportunities and means of production, the State has adopted a major project upon the initiative of and in coordination with the Union for National Youth, one of the largest youth organizations in the Sudan.

In many areas, rampant unemployment dulls their ambition and undermines morale, and we know that civil conflict can have a particularly devastating effect on the young.

He has said that unemployment and a lack of educational opportunities draws youth to criminal gangs.

National action plans and policies to address youth unemployment need constant commitment and greater resources from Governments, particularly via the work of the Youth Employment Network.5

This applies to both unskilled youth and many educated and skilled youth who are equally unemployed, underemployed or not employed in their area of study.

This programme, which aims, inter alia, to discourage the departure of the young abroad, covers graduates registered as unemployed with the Bureau.

We believe that unemployment will continue so long as the political crisis is not resolved and so long as there is not greater involvement on the part of young people in the context of a national youth policy that takes account of the Millennium Development Goals and of the actual needs of youth.

Assisting young men and women in finding employment opportunities is of great importance in many developing countries, in view of persisting high unemployment rates among the urban youth.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has been working with UNAMSIL and the United Nations country team to address youth related issues, particularly the problem of unemployment, and to implement the National Youth Policy designed towards that end.

For example, youth unemployment is also critical for university graduates and other newly skilled young people who are unable to find jobs and contribute to the development of their countries.

It is also crucial in Africa, in particular, to address the high rates of unemployment among the young and undertake concrete measures for job creation.

Finally, speaking within the context of developing countries, we wish to emphasize the alarming reality of youth unemployment.

To do that, it is indispensable to recognize the specific needs of youth and to incorporate young people in the development of national, regional and international strategies against poverty and unemployment.

The Youth Employment Strategy is the Government of Canada's commitment to helping young people, particularly those facing barriers to employment.

The trafficking of small arms has to be curtailed, and options must be made available to the unemployed youth of Côte d'Ivoire.

Egypt was still seeking, within that strategy, to combat poverty by focusing on reduction of unemployment, support for small and medium enterprises, youth programmes and support for older persons and the disabled.

The Viet Nam Association of Young Entrepreneurs provides assistance to young people in starting up and running their businesses.

Measures to reduce the shocking levels of youth unemployment in West Africa are vital for rehabilitation, peacebuilding and development.

I am pleased to represent here one of the leading countries of the Youth Employment Network, a major international initiative to address the challenge of youth employment globally.

Each year since 1997, YES has helped over 80,000 young Canadians find employment.

The establishment of the United Nations Youth Fund and the launching of the Youth Employment Network encouraged the promotion of national action plans for youth employment.