Youth Economic Opportunity Ecosystem Analysis: The Democratic Republic of the Congo Country Report

This report is the key output of an assessment implemented in The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as part of YouthStart Global inception phase. The report aims to capture a picture of the youth economic opportunities ecosystem in DRC by:

• Providing an overview of the employment challenge and demand for financial services;
• Presenting a comprehensive analysis of the demand for and the supply of labor;
• Identifying high-potential opportunities for youth.

It also provides an overview and mapping of the current youth intervention landscape and the supply of financial services, as well as an assessment of key gaps for each of the high-potential opportunities for youth. The key findings presented in the report are:

1. The DRC’s labor market is demand constrained, and there is a consensus among stakeholders that self-employment and enterprise development are promising avenues by which youth can access decent economic opportunities;
2. Youth are not effectively equipped to start their own businesses;
3. Access to capital is a major challenge limiting youth’s ability to successfully start a business;
4. Four sectors have been identified as offering significant employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for youth to engage in, given their current and projected growth;
5. In the growth sectors identified, existing programs do not fully cover the different elements required for youth to access high-potential opportunities.