The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that 73.8 million youth are unemployed globally and the slowdown in economic activity is likely to push another half-million into unemployment by 2014.

ILO report titled: “Global employment trends 2013: recovering from a second jobs dip,” made available to the Ghana News Agency on Tuesday indicates that the youth unemployment rate, which had increased to 12.6 per cent in 2012 is expected to increase to 12.9 per cent by 2017.

It said the crisis has dramatically diminished the labour market prospects for the youth, as many experience long-term unemployment right from the start of their labour market entry, a situation that was never observed during earlier cyclical downturns.

The report said currently, some 35 per cent of all unemployed youth have been out of a job for six months or longer in advanced economies, up from 28.5 per cent in 2007.

It noted that consequently, an increasing number of youth have become discouraged and have left the labour market.

The fifth year after the outbreak of the global financial crisis, global growth has decelerated and unemployment has started to increase again, leaving an accumulated total of some 197 million people without a job in 2012.

It said moreover, some 39 million people have dropped out of the labour market as job prospects proved unattainable, opening a 67 million global jobs gap since 2007.

It reiterated that despite a moderate pick-up in output growth expected for 2013-2014, the unemployment rate is set to increase again and the number of unemployed worldwide is projected to rise by 5.1 million in 2013, to more than 202 million in 2013 and by another 3 million in 2014.

It held that a quarter of the increase of four million in global unemployment in 2012 has been in the advanced economies, while three quarters has been in other regions, with marked effects in East Asia, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

It said those regions that have managed to prevent a further increase in unemployment often have experienced a worsening in job quality, as vulnerable employment and the number of workers living below or very near the poverty line increased.

To solve the unemployment issues the report calls for enhancing youth employability through measures such as better links between the world of education and training and the world of work, including apprenticeships and improving young people’s access to information on career opportunities.

It also mentioned support for job search, and youth employment guarantee schemes; encouraging youth entrepreneurship; and promoting labour standards and rights of young people by ensuring that they receive equal treatment and are afforded rights at work, including their right to organise and bargain collectively, and ensuring their adequate social protection.