Sierra Leone targets youth unemployment through service reform and new national strategies

Sierra Leone is pursuing new initiatives to address youth unemployment and social instability. The Ministry of Youth Affairs has announced plans to transform the National Youth Service (NYS) into a platform focused on skills development and employment. This transition, framed as moving ‘From National Service to National Employment,’ aims to decentralize the service and better connect young people to the labor market through practical experience and leadership training.

In a separate call for action, Dr. Ibrahim Bangura, an APC Flagbearer contender, advocated for a comprehensive national strategy to combat the growing drug crisis and unemployment. He argued that addressing substance abuse requires looking beyond law enforcement to tackle the underlying social and economic grievances that drive youth toward drugs. Bangura emphasized that the country’s young population should be treated as an economic asset rather than a burden, noting that many youths feel excluded from economic opportunities and decision-making processes.