The World Bank Youth Innovation Challenge: Water Solutions for a New Climate Reality is designed to accelerate innovation and unlock the potential of the next generation of youth aquapreneurs from around the world. We welcome you to the Pitch Event, where the 40 finalists selected from over 300 teams will present their ideas to win a spot in the accelerator. Twenty winning teams will access a six-month Accelerator Program, including one-on-one mentoring from successful Water tech CEOs and World Bank Water Experts and a chance to pitch their scalable solutions to VCs and other impact investors. Audiences will also have a chance to vote for their favorite teams.

Join us for Day 2 of this exciting event on May 9, 2024, at 9AM ET.

This is a joint initiative of the World Bank’s Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE) and Water Global Practice’s Utility of the Future Program.

The World Bank Youth Innovation Challenge: Water Solutions for a New Climate Reality is designed to accelerate innovation and unlock the potential of the next generation of youth aquapreneurs from around the world. We welcome you to the Pitch Event, where the 40 finalists selected from over 300 teams will present their ideas to win a spot in the accelerator. Twenty winning teams will access a six-month Accelerator Program, including one-on-one mentoring from successful Water tech CEOs and World Bank Water Experts and a chance to pitch their scalable solutions to VCs and other impact investors. Audiences will also have a chance to vote for their favorite teams.

Join us for Day 1 of this exciting event on May 8, 2024, at 9AM ET.

This is a joint initiative of the World Bank’s Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE) and Water Global Practice’s Utility of the Future Program.

The construction sector accounts for 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions and 7.7% of global employment. Given the scale of waste and pollutants generated by the industry and the potential for job creation, taking a circular economy approach to the construction sector could help to tackle two major development issues: youth unemployment and the climate crisis.

With a focus on the global south, this Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE) webinar explored the following questions:

- What opportunities can the construction sector offer for better, more environmentally friendly jobs for youth?
- How can governments and private sector actors collaborate to promote the adoption of circular practices along the supply chain?
- What are some strategies to advance the inclusion of youth and women in the industry?
- What is the role of digital technology in this space?

Watch the recording here and download the slides here.

The blue economy is a promising sector for advancing youth employment and supporting structural transformation in low-income countries. But ensuring that job creation within this sector is environmentally sustainable requires a focused approach. 

At this S4YE webinar, we presented findings from an S4YE publication, Blue Economy: Structural Transformation & Implications for Youth Employment, and experts from the World Bank, FAO, WorldFish, and GIZ explored strategies for promoting youth-friendly and environment-friendly jobs in ocean-based industries. 

Watch the recording here! 

Traditional social insurance schemes—designed for formal sector, salaried employees—often fall short when it comes to self-employed workers, leading to gaps in coverage. As jobs become increasingly flexible, particularly with the rise of the gig economy, social security systems need to keep up! This S4YE-IDB webinar explored the challenges associated with extending effective social insurance to self-employed workers and presented innovative, tailored solutions. 

Watch the recording here!

This webinar explored the role of youth in transforming the agriculture sector, how the private sector can support meaningful youth engagement in smallholder supply chains through youth profiling, peer-to-peer learning, awareness campaigns, and more. The webinar responded to important questions including: Are rural youths really fleeing the agriculture sector? How can companies benefit from investing in youth across smallholder supply chains? Which digital innovations can reduce barriers to youth participation in agriculture?

The findings from this webinar are based on a recent IFC report, “Working with Smallholders: A Handbook for Firms Building Sustainable Supply Chains,” with a focus on the S4YE-led Youth Participation chapter.

Watch the recording here!

S4YE Innovation Exchange and Partner Summit 2023 was a two-day virtual event that gathered policymakers, senior tech leaders, World Bank staff, AI artists, experts, innovators, and youth leaders who are working to create more and better jobs for young people.

Promotion of the circular economy is currently taking place amid a global backdrop of growing employment precarity, socioeconomic inequalities and political instability. Current discussions primarily focus on the circular economy as a pathway for economic prosperity and growth via resource use and efficiency. But, there is little exploration of how the circular economy may impact people and their livelihoods. This accelerator session highlights how decent work and the circular economy agendas develop simultaneously for a just and inclusive transition that benefits both people and the planet. Experts from Circle Economy, World Bank and the ILO explore tangible ways to advance a decent work agenda in the circular economy interventions and share successful initiatives that can inspire decision makers and other stakeholders around the world to make the circular transition work for all. Watch the recording session here!

Caregiving, whether paid or unpaid, is a skilled job that involves providing critical health, education, and social services for the protection of the young and old. However, where childcare or eldercare does exist, it remains too costly for the average household. This webinar is part of a series building up our recent study on strengthening the health sector while promoting new job opportunities for youth. In this event, we heard from Global Affairs Canada, Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator, IFC, and the World Bank Group to examine the challenges and opportunities the care economy can bring for young women and the skills needed to succeed. Watch the recording webinar here.

Globally, women are underrepresented in online gig work, and results from our upcoming study based on a global survey point to only a quarter of gig workers being women. While there are expectations that online platforms would facilitate access to work for women, the potential of online gig work to support female labor force participation has yet to be fully tapped. In celebration of International Women’s Day, we gather remarkable experts to discuss how the online gig economy can bolster labor opportunities for women and contribute to closing the gender gap.

Watch the recording webinar here!