The government of Iran is working on a new strategy with the United Nations’ development Fund (UNDP) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) to create more jobs in the country.
"Unemployment, especially among youth, is one of this country's biggest concerns. The government appreciates the assistance of UNDP and ILO in this first step in addressing the issue," said Sadegh Bakhtiari, Iranian deputy minister for labor.
Unemployment in Iran stands at 16 percent, with approximately 800,000 young people entering the job market each year. The government will have to double its job creation efforts to meet this demand. Doing so will require heavy investment and a growth rate of more than six percent per year.
"UNDP sees job creation as major means of poverty alleviation," said Haoliang Xu, UNDP's resident representative ad interim. "This project is an important starting point and we hope it will have a concrete outcome."
The main objective is to develop national policies that will encourage employment-friendly investment with special emphasis on encouraging private sector expansion. The project will also design strategies to promote the growth of small and medium-scale businesses, particularly in rural areas.
The initiative will in addition concentrate on developing policies to boost the employability of women and youth. It will assess existing vocational training programs to see if job seekers are getting the skills and training they require. It will also identify the major constraints young entrepreneurs face when starting businesses.
Another objective is to assess the social security scheme and its ability to protect vulnerable groups. The initiative will also try to promote social dialogue on labo laws. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
