QCOSTARICA – The proportion of young people who do not work, study or receive training, ‘NiNi‘ (ni estudia, ni trabaja) is high in Costa Rica, so much so that only two OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries have a higher rate.
Although our country is not mentioned in the projections as such, the Interim Economic Outlook presented on Wednesday had a section where our country does appear, in a not so positive circumstance.
Read more: More than 300,000 “Ninis” in Costa Rica
The rate of these young people (this is how people between 15-24 years old are considered) who are not working or studying is 25%, with a cutoff to the first quarter of the year.
Only South Africa and Colombia surpass us.
However, the rapid rise of this problem is not without concern, since, for example, in our country at the end of 2019 that rate was below 20%.
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“I would like to end by talking about our most precious resource, our young people, key to our recovery … governments must invest resources in human capital, invest in education, give more access to the labor market, hopefully with alliances with firms,” ​​said Laurence Boone, Chief Economist of the OECD during the press conference.
This is because it is stated that this group of people have been severely hit by the Covid-19 pandemic; especially because the increase in the unemployment rate was higher for young people, they calculate.
Many are not even in educational preparation for a job opportunity, both in advanced economies and emerging markets.
“We can agree that it is key and a pillar to invest more in young people, in order to have a more sustainable recovery,” added Boone.
This term “nini” used in Spanish-speaking countries comes from the English NEET (not in education, employment or training), formally introduced in the UK in 1999 with the publication of the Report “Bridging the gap”.