Potential and human talent of young people in this country is amazing: US Envoy

Dignitaries at the YouLead! launch from left: YouLead! Project Director Charles Conconi, USAID Mission Director for Sri Lanka and Maldives Dr. Andrew Sisson, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Atul Keshap and Minister of Skills Development and Vocational Training Chandima Weerakkody

US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Atul Keshap with Minister of Skills Development and Vocational Training Chandima Weerakkody, Deputy Minister of Skills Development and Vocational Training Karunarathna Paranavithana, USAID Mission Director Dr. Andrew Sisson and Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Chairman Rajendra Theagarajah at the lighting of the traditional oil lamp

The Governments of 

Sri Lanka and the United States last week launched the YouLead! initiative on 19 October, a Rs. 1.8 billion program funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to support youth employability, vocational skills development, and entrepreneurship. 

USAID and a coalition of partners from the Government of Sri Lanka, the private sector, non-profit organisations, and academic institutions will collaborate over the next four-years to help young Sri Lankans become more competitive in the labour market. 

Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance (VEGA) will administer the USAID-funded YouLead! program, and International Executive Service Corps (IESC) will implement the program. VEGA is a consortium of 28-member NGOs that bring together highly-skilled volunteers with people around the globe seeking opportunities for self-reliance. IESC is an organisation that has worked with hundreds of private enterprises in Sri Lanka since 1965. Under YouLead!, IESC will partner with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, the American Chamber of Commerce, Arizona State University, Global Communities, Skills for Life, and Verité Research. 

US Ambassador Atul Keshap and Minister Chandima Weerakkody joined for the inauguration ceremony at the Ceylon Chamber 

of Commerce in Colombo.

Here are excerpts from Ambassador Keshap’s remarks. 

I’ve been fortunate to travel all around this country and I’ve met many, many people over the course of my tenure. I’d argue this is one of the happiest moments in the life of this country. That after many decades of tensions and stress, Sri Lankans can look forward to a brighter future.

I would also argue that the potential and human talent of young people in this country is amazing. It’s amazing to behold what young folks in this country can achieve, what their vision is of the future of this country. And I have to tell you that as US Ambassador and representative of our country and government and people here, we are so captured by the vision of the Sri Lankan people. 

We are so impressed by the vision of the Sri Lankan people, articulated in free and democratic elections in 2015. It has resulted in a new high-water mark of U.S.-Sri Lanka relations. It has resulted in, arguably, the best relations we’ve ever had. Because your people, your young people, your Government, your political leaders, your President, and your Prime Minister are leading this country in a better direction. A direction of greater democracy, reconciliation, prosperity, peace, harmony, and hopefully full opportunity for all of those young people.

This is a vision that the American people truly respect and they truly appreciate, and we are committed to giving our full support as a Government and a people to the achievement of the dreams and visions of the people of Sri Lanka. When you look at all of the visits that we’ve had by high-level Americans, you look at all of the development assistance that Dr. Sisson and his team are providing in partnership, continuing six decades of tradition and friendship between USAID and the people and Government of Sri Lanka. 

When you look at our efforts on the Millennium Challenge Corporation, when you look at our efforts in terms of transparency and rule of law, in working with the Government on issues related to debt and public finances. When you look at the activities of our young sailors and marines who come here and not only work with your armed forces on training for things like humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, but also engage in personal volunteerism and charity in schools and in orphanages and other places all around this country. We are fully invested in the success of the Sri Lankan people.

So it gives me particular pleasure and honour to speak to you at the launch of this truly important and consequential program and in the presence of Minister Chandima Weerakkody. It is our belief and our investment in the future of Sri Lanka, and our vote of confidence that your young people will take your country to even greater heights of happiness and prosperity.

Focus on youth

One thing I keep in mind is that there are 1.5 billion young people in this world and how they feel and the degree to which they are employed will have a tremendous impact on the peace and security and prosperity of the world of tomorrow. 

There are statistics that say that 70% of unemployed people in Sri Lanka are youth, aged between 15 and 29. Seventy percent of the unemployed people are youth. Unemployment in the 15 to 29 age group is nine times larger than unemployment in the rest of the population. More than 278,000 students leave the school system here without admission to university every year, and it’s estimated that more than a quarter of a million young Sri Lankans in that age group are unable to find a job.

But what gives me hope is that Sri Lanka has a growing economy. I understand that a lot of jobs are coming in with the tourism sector, and that the tourism sector alone will require 300,000 new jobs by 2020. If you look at the construction sector, it’s estimated that it will need 400,000 new employees. Friends, it is the private sector that is the engine of job creation and job growth almost anywhere in the world, including in the United States and, I would argue, here in Sri Lanka. And that it is in the area where your economy has a comparative advantage like tourism, construction, maritime services, where the private sector will truly lead the growth of job creation and provide opportunity to young people.

I think all of us recognise that there is a challenge being faced by young people, and that there is a growing frustration all around the world that young people feel that maybe they won’t be able to have a family, pay a mortgage, own a house, hold a steady job, take care of themselves. That in a world of increasing automation, job growth is not certain. And yet there are certain skills that are always going to be needed. 

Some of those schools don’t require an A Level or an O Level. They require actual skill. I can tell you, ladies and gentlemen, and my wife will attest, I do not know how to fix the plumbing in our house. I would bet most people in this room don’t know how either. And as you well know, when you need a plumber, you really, really, really need a plumber. And those jobs are going to be essential well into the future.

So one of the challenges is making sure that there are enough skilled people in any economy to ensure that the economy itself as a whole can grow. And that is the whole purpose of this program. There’s a considerable amount of United States government money being invested in this. It is an investment in the future and happiness of the Sri Lankan people. It’s an investment in the future prosperity of this country. It is also an investment in seeing that Sri Lanka can be a stable, prosperous, happy, reconciled country. A country where its youth can achieve their full potential, where they can be happy, they can contribute to the greater happiness of the economy.

And so for USAID, for its project partners and for the Government of Sri Lanka, the idea is to invest Rs. 1.8 billion, which is equivalent to about $ 12 million, to create a more market-oriented, skilled, and flexible youth workplace. The YouLead! initiative will link unemployed Sri Lankan youth to both new and existing jobs and create or expand self-employment opportunities. Driven by skill development and on-the-job training, mentoring services, and private and public sector linkages, the initiative will also improve youth access to finance so that they can start their own businesses and generate further employment.

An entrepreneur culture

One of the greatest things about the United States is that we have an entrepreneur culture. We have a start-up culture. It is not unusual for a young person to say, you know what, I am quitting my steady government job and I am going to start up a new company because I have a better idea. 

Steve Jobs was an entrepreneur who had nothing but an idea and he started one of the biggest companies in the world. You can think of a thousand other Americans who have created multi-billion dollar companies that changed the world based on the power of an idea, faith in themselves, a little bit of access to credit, and self-confidence. Self-confidence that they didn’t need to finish up a degree in order to make Facebook a success. Self-confidence that they could drop out and found Microsoft. Self-confidence they could quit a job and start a company that would change the entire world.

So helping fuel that vision and addressing the concerns and fears and frustrations of the young people is a key part of this. 

The hope is that over the course of this program we’re going to partner with the private sector to train more than 1,200 counsellors throughout the country to develop improved career guidance to more than 95,000 youth, better preparing them to join the job market.

This will in turn introduce 50 new curricula that are developed in close cooperation with public and private sector stakeholders in order to prioritise high growth sectors. YouLead! will specifically work to engage women and rural youth to ensure employment and that income disparities between men and women are reduced. 

I recognise we can’t do this all by ourselves. We have to work with the Government of Sri Lanka, the wonderful partner that we’ve had for 60 years in development. We’ve got to work with the Volunteers for Economic Growth, our partner. The International Service Executive Corps, Ministry of Skill Development, of course, and Vocational Training, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, the American Chamber of Commerce, the private sector, many non-profit partners that are working with us. And I want to thank all of them for their partnership and their solidarity and cooperation as we launch this.

We do this as Americans not purely for the benefit of the Sri Lankan people. We believe that when countries like Sri Lanka benefit and grow and become a better democracy and stronger and more viable countries, it is for the good of the American people. It is for the peace and security of the entire planet.

-Pix by Lasantha Kumara