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P39


Urban livelihoods for the next generation: the politics of youth employment in towns and cities of the Global South 
Convenor:
Nicola Banks (University of Manchester)
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Location:
F34 (Richmond building)
Start time:
7 September, 2017 at
Time zone: Europe/London
Session slots:
1

Short Abstract:

Urban youth devise multiple strategies to deal with economic insecurity. What opportunities do local and national politics offer young people for extending opportunities for income generation and livelihoods security.

Long Abstract:

One of the central tenets of Habitat III's call for sustainable and inclusive urban development is full and productive employment for all. Yet this appears little more than a pipe dream to young people in cities across the Global South, dampening expectations and generating anxiety and frustration. This insecurity often translates into political instability (Sommers 2006; Phillips 2013) and unemployed young men are often characterised as potentially dangerous agents of social change and violence.

We explore the extent to which local urban economies in Bangladesh, Uganda and Ethiopia have met the employment needs of their young people and the multiple ways in which politics, political engagement and/or state-led programmes are filling in the gulf between employment needs and employment realities.

With opportunity landscapes constrained by the nature of local labour markets, how do urban youth use the political landscape to extend opportunities for security and accumulation? What efforts have the state made in tackling the youth unemployment challenge and what are the prime motivations behind these? Are these strategies and programmes sustainable from young people's perspectives, or do they offer opportunities for survival with little chance of enhanced future prospects? What are the terms of inclusion of participation in these opportunities and their influence on meeting goals of inclusive urban development?

Accepted papers:

Session 1