Population of young people who neither study nor work in Peru reached 19.1% in 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has had very strong impacts on the Peruvian labor market, especially for young people. According to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics (INEI), during 2021, young people between the ages of 15 and 29 who neither study nor work (NiNis) represented 19.1% of the total of this age group, an increase of 2.2% compared to 2009 (16.9%), reported the National Center for Strategic Planning (Ceplan).

The entity detailed that in 2021, 20.7% of young people living in the urban area were Ninis, which meant an increase of 2.7% compared to what was reported in 2009 (18%); while the percentage of young NEETs living in rural areas had a reduction of 0.4%, with percentages below the trend at the national and urban levels (it went from 13.2% in 2009 to 12.8% in 2021). . On the other hand, in the 2009-2021 period, the average percentage of Ninis young women was 24%, almost double the percentage of Ninis young men, which reached 11.9%.

This trend is also observed at the level of regions within the country, where there are differences in the percentage of male and female NEETs. “By 2020, in the jungle, the percentage of young women who do not study, are not employed or receive training registers 29.0%, nearly 2.5 times more than the percentage of men (12.0%); in so much so that, on the coast, women reached 33.3% and men 24.2%; and in the mountains, it reached 21.9% in women and 16.1% in men,” he explained. Ceplan.

Meanwhile, in Latin America, in 2020, 18.0% of young men between the ages of 15 and 24 did not work, study or receive training, while the percentage of women was 30.0%.

“Experts believe that maternity or conjugal life are the main reasons why some young people, especially women, do not find employment, and end up moving away from educational and economic activities. This would be a consequence of cultural aspects of Peruvian society, where It is common to observe that women fulfill the role of mothers and housewives”, emphasizes the orgamism.

For this reason, Ceplan recommends the creation of job opportunities for young people in the digital economy, which implies that a favorable political framework and strategic actions be established in relation to the supply of digital skills in the population. For example, as a positive impact of digital transformation, the ILO estimates that if universal broadband coverage is achieved by 2030 and training in digital skills is achieved, 6.4 million new jobs could be created for young people. .