General Assembly: Statement by Counsellor Kage at the Joint Meeting of ECOSOC and PBC on “Partnership for job creation for young people in countries emerging from conflict”
(General Assembly: Statement as delivered by Counsellor Kage at the Joint Meeting of ECOSOC and PBC on “Partnership for job creation for young people in countries emerging from conflict”)
Mr President
Germany aligns itself with the statement made by the European Union.
We welcome today`s Joint Meeting of the Economic and Social Council and the Peacebuilding Commission as a further step to enhance cooperation between the two bodies. It enables a fruitful exchange of new approaches and lessons learned on issues that are of great importance in post-conflict economies.”
Germany thinks that developing and implementing strategies for better using the youth’s potential by providing productive and decent employment for the growing number of young people, should be at the heart of all efforts. Three aspects are especially important in fragile states:
Youth unemployment does have an impact on conflicts.
Conflict affected environments impede a transition to wage or self-employment.
Employment can break the vicious cycle of conflict escalation.
In order to tackle the challenges of a conflict affected environment, interventions should promote entrepreneurship and skills training and improve the educational system as everywhere else. Special attention has to be given to facilitating the social and economic (re)integration of conflict-affected groups. Youth social work strategies also increasingly target the development of personal and social skills, including inter alia self-organisation, strength of mind, team spirit, peaceful conflict resolution.
To give some examples from German Development Cooperation:
The German Government has established a Fund to initiate development partnerships with the private sector (DPP) for West Africa and to lessen risks for companies in Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
We support Peace-building and education work with ex-combatants.
In Sierra Leone the German Government has developed successfully programmes for the qualification of young people and for the promotion of the private sector.
Thank you.
