| Resumen: |
Throughout Latin America, youth who are neither working nor
in school are often labeled ninis, from the Spanish phrase “ni estudia ni
trabaja.”
1 One in five youth in the region—totaling more than 18 million
people aged 15–24—is living as a nini.2 Moreover, the problem has proven
very persistent. Despite the strong economic performance of Latin America
during the 2000s—with vibrant economic growth and a significant reduction
in poverty and inequality—the proportion of ninis fell only marginally,
and the number of ninis actually increased.
There are three main reasons why governments throughout Latin
America—and beyond them, society as a whole—should care about the
nini problem:
•• It contributes to the intergenerational persistence of inequality. Nearly
60 percent of ninis in the region are from poor or vulnerable households
in the bottom 40 percent of the income distribution,3 and 66 percent
are women. Coupled with long-lasting harm to labor-market
performance,
these imbalances tend to lock in gender disparities and low
incomes from one generation to the next, obstructing social mobility
and poverty reduction in the region.
•• It is linked to crime and violence, in some contexts. In Colombia, Mexico,
and Central America, where the share of ninis is above the regional
average, the problem is compounded
by the widespread presence of
organized crime. In such environments, new evidence shows that the
nini problem is correlated with crime and violence, heightening risks
for the youth and for society as a whole.
•• Failing to address the problem of ninis in Latin America could prevent
the region from exploiting an emerging demographic window of
opportunity. |
