Opportunités économiques et réduction de la violence des jeunes au Bénin

Benin faces, among other things, two phenomena perceived as threats to political stability and factors that weaken the country's economic and social development process. In effect, research has shown that young people, who make up close to 65% of the country's population, are largely excluded from sustainable economic opportunities and they are the main actors in and victims of violence.

Faced with this situation and based on the implicit assumption that access to economic opportunities can help to distance young people from violence and thereby ensure stability, the Beninese government developed, among other things, the Capacity Building for Job Seekers program. The program is intended to extend across the country and create a favourable environment for Beninese youth to access decent formal or informal employment. However, despite the hopes for this program, it has not yet been assessed to determine its effectiveness, specifically how it contributes to reducing youth violence. In this context, using a mixed and participative approach, a research team from the Institute of Empirical Research in Political Economy composed of women and youth plans to conduct a critical review of this program to determine its effectiveness, degree of inclusion, and especially its impacts in reducing or preventing youth involvement in violence. Based on the results obtained, in addition to helping to clarify the link between access to economic opportunities and reduction or prevention of youth violence, the researchers will outline strategic recommendations for policymakers, donors, and other development stakeholders in Benin and beyond. These recommendations can be used to improve the process for developing these programs and their content and for implementing them with a view to inclusion, particularly of the most vulnerable youth.