Development and
Cooperation

Digital monthly 2/2020

Employment and innovation

Kenyan artisan using SOKO.
SMEs

Innovative drivers of sustainable development

The Up-Scaling programme of DEG, the German development finance institution

Garment workers in a DEG-supported Nigerian production facility.
Private-sector development

“The right balance”

Innovative start-ups make a difference in Africa, but on their own they cannot generate enough jobs

Delivery and processing matter too: South African workers sorting potatos.
Rural youth

Clearing the jobs hurdle

What helps Africa’s growing, youthful population find productive jobs in rural areas

More Articles

Supporters of the opposition Democratic Alliance in Johannesburg demonstrate for more jobs in 2016.
Youth unemployment

South Africa’s time bomb

Five proposals for improving labour-market dynamics in South Africa

The core themes in Leti Arts products are stories of African superheroes.
MEST funding

Successful businesses

Examples of successful tech start-ups whose founders have graduated from the MEST Training Program

Successful MEST graduate (right).
Start-ups

“Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not”

MEST Ghana trains young high-tech entrepreneurs and promotes African talents

Frank Masanta founded the Sun-spring Charity School in the Ng’ombe Township in Lusaka.
Social entrepreneur

Enlightening the young generation

In spite of financial constraints, Frank Masanta is running the school for disadvantaged children in Lusaka, Zambia

The survey team in Monrovia with our co-authors (SalaMartu Stephanie Duncan left and Michael Konow kneeling in front) plus another supporter from Hamburg, Torsten König.
Employers

Advocating for the private sector

Liberian business leaders want their government to tackle specific challenges

Factory worker employed in copra production in Quelimane, Mozambique. Copra is dried coconut flesh that is used to make coconut oil.
Labour market

Why small-business owners find formalisation unattractive

In Mozambique, for every person working in the formal sector, there are ten in the informal sector

Twiga is a mid-sized Kenyan company that is creating many jobs by using smart technology in the supply chain for Nairobi’s retail businesses.
Our view

Enterprising people with great ideas

If humanity is to develop in a sustainable way, we must create gainful employment for the millions of young people

Sugar-cane harvest in the Indian state of Karnataka. Bio-Lutions produces disposable tableware from the plant residues.
Private-sector company

Sustainable, biodegradable and chemical-free

Bio-Lutions developed a patented technology to use agricultural residues to produce biodegradable packaging and disposable tableware

Production of biodegradable kidney dishes at the Bio-Lutions plant in Bangalore.
Avoiding plastic

Growing awareness

To tackle the plastic-waste problem, a German-Indian company offers an innovative solution