Overseas jobs, govt service top career choices of youths

About 20 percent of the youth of the county -- mostly males aged between 15 and 35 -- are interested to go abroad for better living and career opportunities, a non-government survey has found.

A majority of them -- 57 percent females and 42 percent males -- prefer government jobs as a career, the survey said.

Brac, in association with Brac Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) and Brac University conducted the survey -- titled “Youth Survey 2018” -- on 4,200 youths from across the country chosen through systematic sampling, the findings of which were unveiled at a seminar in a city hotel yesterday.

According to the findings, about one-third of the youths who want to go abroad have already started preparing for it, although a large number of them do not have sufficient education and English skills.

Those who have a lower level of education and are comparatively poor prefer to go to countries in Middle East and Asia, while others prefer USA, Australia and European countries, said the survey.

The eagerness for going abroad is comparatively higher among younger people. For instance, 25 percent of the survey participants -- aged between 15 and 19 -- would like to work abroad, it added.

The survey also found only one-fifth of the youths believe their education would help them get a job. This means the youths do not trust the quality and relevance of the education they are receiving, it said.

Asked about the tendency of going abroad, researchers told this newspaper that youths consider working abroad a better life choice, which can help them secure their future.

“The youths think doing well in the country is very difficult. Besides, competition for getting jobs is very high here,” said Anindita Bhattacharjee, one of the researchers.

She termed the tendency of going abroad and getting government jobs “not healthy” for the country.

“A lack of innovation will be induced among the youths if they remain confined into these two [migration and government service]... And the country will not get new entrepreneurs,” said Anindita, a senior research associate of BIGD.

She emphasised on more focus on disadvantaged young females, as they mostly lag behind in getting jobs or being involved in income-generating activities.

At the seminar, Head of Brac’s Migration Programme Shariful Hasan suggested that the government curb the tendency through creating more opportunities for youths in the country. Otherwise, it will lose skilled manpower day by day, he added.

Speaking as the chief guest, Zahid Ahsan Russel, state minister for youth and sports, said the government has already taken several initiatives to train youths and create work opportunities for them. The initiatives will begin to be implemented from this fiscal year, he added.

Jafar Uddin, secretary in charge of the ministry; Asif Saleh, acting executive director of Brac; Imran Matin, executive director of BIGD and lead researcher of the study; Zonayed Saki, chief coordinator of Ganosamhati Andolon; and singer-journalist Elita Karim spoke at the event.