If the Asian Decent Work Decade is to succeed, countries will need to provide more decent work opportunities and access to entrepreneurship for young women and men. While unemployment has risen generally, the brunt has been borne by young workers: although only one in five workers are between the ages of 15 and 24, this groups accounts for almost half of the
region’s jobless. For many of the young working poor, however, unemployment is a luxury - they often have no choice but to work long hours, unprotected against hazards and risks, on precarious contracts with low pay and few prospects.