Youth Employment Challenges & Opportunities: the Case of Sierra Leone

The study was aimed at assessing the main causes of youth unemployment in Sierra Leone and to develop sustainable employment strategic principles which will enhance the management of youth employment opportunities in the country and beyond. Primary data were collected through structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Different reports, policy papers and publications were also reviewed. Legacy of the civil war, mismatch between the demand and supply side of labor, weak entrepreneurship services, rural to urban migration, and low level of involvement in agriculture were among the identified factors that aggravated the youth unemployment rate in the country. The study has also identified strategic directions which could help policy and decision makers for their effort in empowering the youth of the country and other countries that are facing same challenge.