APA-Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) Some 800 young Ivorian migrants are expected to benefit from this support to develop their socio-professional schemes.
With the aim of supporting the Ivorian government’s initiatives to limit emigration and provide better economic prospects for young people, Orange Bank Africa and the Agence Emploi Jeunes have signed a partnership to provide financial support for migrants.
On Tuesday 20 March, 96 beneficiaries of the programme received cheques for setting up income-generating activities at the offices of the ‘Caisse Nationale de Prevoyance Sociale’ (CNPS) in Plateau, Abidjan’s business district.
A total of 800 young migrants will benefit from this agreement, which will give them quicker and easier access to credit for the development of socio-professional projects. The pilot project will start with 430 young people selected and supported by the ‘Agence Emploi Jeunes’ for more than 440 million CFA francs.
The partnership between the ‘Agence Emploi Jeune’ and this 100 percent digital bank provides a framework for obtaining financing for projects ranging from 100,000 CFA francs to 2,500,000 CFA francs, for projects studied and validated upstream by the agency.
Madongui Nanie, head of the Individual Customers and SME/SMIs Department, representing the bank’s General Manager, said that financial inclusion remained one of the bank’s top priorities.
“This support demonstrates the bank’s commitment to supporting the efforts of the government of Côte d’Ivoire to offer young people better economic alternatives. We encourage the beneficiaries to embark on a process of developing sustainable activities,” she said.
The project also aims to promote the socio-professional reintegration of young Ivorian migrants, 96 of whom have recently returned from exile and received financial support under a partnership between the Agence Emploi Jeunes and the bank.
This partnership should help to promote the socio-professional reintegration of young Ivorian migrants. The cheques were handed over in the presence of Mamadou Toure, Minister for the Promotion of Youth, Professional Integration and Civic Service.
These young people are actively seeking economic opportunities, which are often lacking on the continent, and are driven to go into exile in search of better opportunities. Many young people who have tried to cross the Mediterranean to France have ended up dead.
According to the Statista website, by 2022 the total population of Africa will be around 1.4 billion. Around 40 percent of this population was aged 15 or under, compared with a global average of 25 percent.
In Côte d’Ivoire, the 2018 ECOWAS report on regional migration indicators in West Africa reveals that 19.43 percent of young Ivorians express the intention to emigrate, motivated by the search for a more promising job or a better quality of life.
The latest figures from the regional organisation, dating from 2019, testify to the lack of job opportunities for young graduates.
Of the 40,000 new graduates who leave schools each year, only 31.7 percent find a job at the end of their training.
AP/fss/as/APA