62% young women not in employment, education

Three out of five young women in Bangladesh were considered NEETs (not in employment, education, or training) in 2022, a waste of the workforce in a country looking to thrive riding on the demographic dividend, official figures showed.

The NEETs are a group of population aged 15-24.

The share of women who are recognised as NEETs rose 2.53 percentage points in 2022 to 61.71 percent, according to the Bangladesh Sample Vital Statistics 2022 of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

The overall share of population in the NEET category stood at 40.67 percent in the same year compared to 39.61 percent in 2021.

Globally, 21.7 percent population were considered NEETs in 2023, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Bangladesh has 3.15 crore people aged between 15 and 24, with around 1.28 crore falling under the NEET category, BBS data showed.

"This is a bad situation as it is a huge waste of the country's demographic dividend potential," said Rushidan Islam Rahman, executive chairperson of the Centre for Development and Employment Research.

"This is a total loss for both the individuals and the nation," said Debapriya Bhattacharya, a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue.

"First, a huge share of the workforce has remained under-utilised and underrated. Second, it leads to social discontent, unrest and domestic violence."

Rizwanul Islam, a former special adviser for employment at the International Labour Office in Geneva, said the rising number of young women under NEET is consistent with their declining participation in the workforce in urban areas.

He said opportunities for women's employment are limited in terms of demand.

"The sharp fall in the growth of employment in the garments industry must have reduced the employment opportunities for women with low education."

He also said opportunities for employment outside the family are very limited for rural women and this may discourage potential workers from entering the labour market.

"And while women's enrolment in education has risen, the same can't be said in the case of technical and vocational training."

Bhattacharya thinks the tendency among young women to move to non-wage jobs and their higher rate of dropouts in the post-pandemic period have been the main factors for the spike in female NEETs.

"The lack of social and economic security has also contributed to the higher inactivity of young women."

According to Bhattacharya, the training facilities currently available for young people are not suitable for improving their competitiveness in the labour market.

Mohammad Avi Hossain, employment and programme specialist at the International Labour Organization, thinks the low investment in education as a percentage of GDP is making education expensive in many cases.

"As a result, a lot of young people decide not to take part in education even if they are unemployed or inactive. They are not even searching for jobs."

He said due to the very tight labour market -- fewer vacancies relative to the unemployed or labour force participants -- these individuals get demotivated after searching for jobs and training.

"They become inactive in the labour market after a few months and ultimately get placed under the NEET category."

Rushidan Islam Rahman said the NEETs must be provided with suitable access to training.

"Young people without quality education and relevant skills can't help build a Smart Bangladesh."

She also suggested that along with improving their employability, the demand for young people in the workforce must be expanded through the development of labour-intensive small-and-medium enterprises.

However, this not only requires the appropriate policies as their proper implementation is key.

"There is an urgent need to reform the education sector to improve the employability of young people and adopt policies to create quality jobs," she said.

Moreover, young individuals who are not in education or employment may be frustrated and get involved in anti-social activities, warned Rahman, also a former research director of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.

"There is a need to reduce the number of young people in the NEET category, especially among men, to help meet the country's Sustainable Development Goals."