Jobless Youth Make Gains in Latin America
entra 21 Evaluation Study Demonstrates Program's Impact, Learnings
 
Baltimore, MD:  Disadvantaged youth who are provided a comprehensive package of training, mentoring, and job placement support are finding success in the job market. A recent report released by the International Youth Foundation documents the progress being made to secure employment by graduates of entra 21,  a regional job training program aimed at addressing the soaring unemployment rates amoung young people in Latin America and the Caribbean.
  
Among the reported findings:
  • Six months after graduating from the program, 54% of entra 21 participants were working, and 80% of those jobs were full-time
  • Salaries for those who were previously working doubled or better after graduation from the program in three of the six projects studied.
  • Employers surveyed reported being highly satisfied with entra 21 graduates and considered their job performance to be equivalent to or better than that of other employees in similar positions.
  • The levels of education improved among participants, with the rate of re-enrollment in formal education more than doubling among entra 21 graduates.
Entra 21 is cited by the World Bank as one of ten promising employability programs now operating around the world in its recently published World Development Report 2007: “Development and the Next Generation.” 
  
Read more about the study
Download Entering the World of Work: Results from Six entra 21 Youth Employment Projects: An Executive Summary