Abstract & Poster

In the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), the global youth population has been negatively affected by the deep recession, the ensuing environment of prolonged and shallow economic recovery and lackluster job growth. The global youth unemployment rate is approximately three times the unemployment rate of adult, and more than two times the overall global unemployment rate. The increasing rate of unemployed graduates is one of the issues that triggers world’s concerns lately. World Bank Comparative youth unemployment puts Malaysia as the second highest to Indonesia in the region. Hence, it shows that high percentage of fresh graduates are facing unemployment crisis amidst a shaky economy in Malaysia.

It is no doubt that youth unemployment has becoming one of the global problem, especially in developing and emerging markets. One of the reasons for this is the mismatch between employable skills and current approaches to education. In this era of globalization and competitiveness, employers are looking for versatile graduates who are able to drive their organizations to compete successfully in the market place. For decades’ employers as well as educators frequently complain about a lack in soft skills among graduates from tertiary education institutions. They gave negative comments on the graduates and mentioned that the graduates do not have the suitable skills and qualifications, which meet the needs of the industry. Besides, the graduates are not only weak in the aspect of soft skills but they also do not show a good working performance. Hence, obtaining a good degree is no longer sufficient to get a job. Graduates should equip themselves, not only with technical skills, but more importantly, with soft skills.

We do have a few of youth center which can be used for youth development, but it seems that it failed to attract the participation of youth due to its programs, activities, facilities and environment. Most importantly, educators and the employers often do not interact with each

other regularly on the development programs and training which are related to their field of study. Demand-driven youth training models require careful collaboration with employers to design training and placement opportunities for specific skills. In addition, the design spaces are failing to meet the needs of youth that encourage self-development and collaboration happening in these center. In a nutshell, to provide a better youth center, it needs to include

involvement in co-curricular activities, training and development program that can make a smooth transition to work with more conducive designed space and encourage their high participation for self-development in future. The ILO highlights the important role of social partners in contributing to the design, implementation and monitoring of education, training and lifelong learning policies and programs with a view to improving their responsiveness to the world of work.

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