BLOGS

For the more than 1.2 billion people in the world living without electricity, lighting at night is a huge challenge. Many rural homes rely on kerosene lamps, which cast poor light, can be toxic to their users and, when knocked over, burn some 2.2 million children a year. Among the world’s poorest people, purchasing kerosene can consume up to a third of their total income.

Inside a bustling workshop in one of the nation’s most prestigious vocational education and training centers, aspiring technical students carefully navigate metal pliers to repair a colorful array of yellow, green, black and red wiring on an electrical panel board.

Over 100 years ago, Napoleon reportedly said of China: “Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will shake the world.” In light of China’s rapid economic growth in the 21st century, the French general’s view seems justified. Although it still has deep developmental gaps, China has made rapid progress to become the world’s second largest economy as well as the world’s workshop – filling every corner of the globe with an amazing range of products.

How can we provide employment to the 1.8 billion young people that live on this planet? Will we have enough jobs for all these young people? Will there be sufficient high-quality and high-productivity work, especially for women, who are often the most vulnerable when it comes to finding meaningful work? The size of the youth employment challenge – and opportunity – is enormous. That’s why we need all the help we can get.