October 21, 2021 | Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
A team of local PEP researchers held a national policy conference to show how investing in citizen education programs can help vulnerable youth reduce anti-social behaviours and increase participation in productive activities.
October 21, 2021 – A team of local PEP researchers held a national policy conference to share their recommendations for increasing the social inclusion of vulnerable youth in Côte d’Ivoire.
The team brought together more than 60 policy stakeholders and advisors, academics, and representatives of civil society and the media. The key policy stakeholders in attendance were representatives of the Ministries of Youth and Civic Education, of Employment and Social Protection, and of Vocational Training, as well as a number of municipal governments.
The PEP team presented findings and recommendations from their PEP project investigating the impact of military-style citizenship education on the socio-economic integration of vulnerable youth in Côte d'Ivoire.
The team explained how the military-style citizen education program within the government’s Civic Action Service for Employment and Development (SCAED) reduces crime, drug abuse, alcohol consumption and violent attributes while also increasing altruism, positive reciprocity, and life satisfaction.
They advocated for investment to scale up the program to reach more vulnerable youths. The Director General of the National Office of Civic Service (OSCN) declared his support for this recommendation and commended the team’s work.
The project team also recommended that the program be adapted to allow for different needs and considerations by gender as the current program was found to increase impatience, life dissatisfaction and impulsivity among women beneficiaries.
The audience responded positively to the research. The technical adviser to the Minister of Employment and Social Protection said the team’s findings will support the National Strategic Document on Employment and Social Inclusion that is currently being developed. The team has been invited to collaborate directly with the Ministry on this strategy.
Journalists from Fraternité matin, L'inter, and Le patriote—daily national newspapers—and the television channel Buisness 24 reported on the event, raising the profile of the team’s results and recommendations among the general public.
The research team organized the event with financial and advisory support from PEP.
