Tearing down barriers that prevent more young people from becoming successful social entrepreneurs will contribute to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals and tackling the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19, according to this report by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

The report calls on governments and other decision-makers to remove obstacles to youth social entrepreneurship, such as access to start-up funds that are presently limiting the ability of young people to engage in profitable activities. Many regulatory systems often prevent — sometimes involuntarily — young people from accessing financial products and services needed to start an enterprise. And a lack of access to training, technical support, networks and markets are also discouraging the growth of youth social enterprises.

The 2020 World Youth Report “Youth Social Entrepreneurship and the 2030 Agenda,” defines social entrepreneurship as businesses that generate profits while seeking to generate social impacts. Unemployment among the world’s 1.2 billion young people is far higher than for adults and COVID-19 has worsened their outlook for job prospects. Estimates dating from before the pandemic suggest that 600 million jobs would have to be created in the next 15 years to meet youth employment needs. The economic impact of COVID-19 is set to make the job market more challenging for youth. The ILO reports that in the first quarter of 2020, about 5.4 per cent of global working hours, that is equivalent to 155 million full-time job, were lost relative to the fourth quarter of 2019.

Social entrepreneurship can provide a viable path forward for young people to earn a living and help address their communities’ needs while advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. Particularly, the report found that social entrepreneurship can enhance the social inclusion of vulnerable groups. “Creating pathways for youth social entrepreneurship can generate positive outcomes for everyone,” said Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. “When supported by enabling policies and programmes, social entrepreneurship can represent a great way for young people to earn a living, and improve the world around them.”

Recommendations

The report calls on governments to put in place policies and regulatory frameworks that promote skills development, ensure the availability of adapted financial capital and services, generate relevant technical support and infrastructure as well as open networks and markets to young social entrepreneurs. Fostering a culture and societal norms that support youth social entrepreneurship is also needed.