Young people across the world finish school or university, then struggle to turn learning into a first job. Employers ask for experience, but experience requires a job. That loop wastes talent and knocks confidence.
What needs to change
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Pay every entry-level placement. Unpaid roles shut out those without financial backing and widen inequality.
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Build demand-led training with employers at the table from the start. If a skill is not tied to a real vacancy, it rarely leads to work.
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Recognise micro-credentials that map to specific tasks, then let learners stack them towards diplomas and degrees.
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Support youth entrepreneurship with practical finance and mentors, not just pitch days.
What YGLN will do
We will expand mentorship and career clinics through EMADConnect. We will embed employer challenges and paid placements into our leadership pathways, including the Emerging Change & Leadership Practitioner track. We will also publish a simple partnership template that universities, employers and youth groups can adopt.
A word from YGLN
“Young people have done their part. It is on all of us to remove barriers at the first rung, pay early experience properly and make skills training lead to real jobs,” said Emmanuel Addo, Founder of the Young Global Leaders Network.
Get involved
Employers, pledge paid entry roles and co-design short, job-linked modules. Universities and training providers, align courses to live vacancies. Young people, tell us where the gaps are and join our next cohort.
