Somalia is a low-income country — one of the least developed in the world. However, there has been a slight acceleration in economic growth in the past few years. In 2018, real GDP growth increased to 2.8% from 1.4% in 2017.
At the dawn of independence in 1960, four main sectors of the Somali economy employed the labor force.
More than 65% of the population earned their livelihood from the pastoral and semi-pastoral economy, largely depending on livestock.
Plantations also absorbed a sizeable labour force, supplying nearly half of Somalia’s export earnings.
After the violent ouster of the military regime in 1991, technical schools that produced sector-oriented graduates collapsed, and the number of skilled laborers in the fisheries and agricultural sectors fell drastically.
Employment in the public sector completely disappeared.
Education fell into the hands of local organizations and enrollment fell to abysmally low levels.
This study explores the state of Somalia’s workforce, highlighting the main challenges and employment opportunities. It investigates the factors that constrain employment opportunities in order to develop actionable strategic interventions
The study identifies a number of major challenges for labour in Somalia, such as a mismatch between the skills taught at institutions of higher learning and those required by existing opportunities in Somalia’s productive sectors.
Limited skills development and training opportunities also impede meaningful employment.
Women in particular face employment barriers due to a lack of education and skills development for girls as well as cultural impediments.
This study co-produced by the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) and City University, Mogadishu
