UN Analysis Final.pdf - United Nations in Cambodia

The implications of this data are that a large proportion of youth with low skills and poor educational
backgrounds will have very limited opportunities to work as wage labourers in either the formal or informal
economies. In addition, rural youths are likely to suffer more from having low-paid jobs and remaining at risk
from having to migrate to urban and border areas.
Overall, the employment prospects for males are better than for females, and this is true even in the garment
industry, which disproportionately employs females,the difference is almost 7 per cent. (table 5-9). Available
jobs for male youths are predominantly found in construction or selling their labour. Demand for female
workers appears to lie more in the area of unpaid jobs as family helpers, which puts them at the bottom in the
conventional occupational ladder, and, at the same time, in terms of income and status in the labour market.
Table 5-9. Labour force by gender, location and employment status
Employees
Employers
Own Account
Workers
Unpaid family
helpers
Cambodia
Both sexes 20.0 0.1 34.4 43.3 2.3 100
Male 23.3 0.1 39.7 34.8 1.2 100
Female 16.6 0.1 28.8 52.0 2.5 100
Phnom Penh
Both sexes 48.0 0.1 27.1 22.9 1.9 100
Male 56.3 0 23.5 18.7 2.4 100
Female 39.1 0.1 31 27.4 2.4 100
Other Urban
Both sexes 26.3 0.2 34.5 36.5 2.6 100
Male 32.6 0.3 36.3 28.8 2.1 100
Female 19.5 0 32.6 44.7 3.1 100
Rural
Both sexes 16.7 0.1 35 46 2.3 100
Male 19.1 0.1 41.7 37.1 2 100
Female 14.3 0.1 28.2 55 2.4 100
Source: CSES 2004
Other
Total
5.2.2 UNEMPLOYED YOUTH
Unemployment in Phnom Penh in 2004 among 15-19 year-olds was 6.2 per cent, with little gender variation
(CSES 2004). The rates were slightly higher for those aged 20-24, nearly 8 per cent (9.3 per cent for males
and 6.5 per cent for females). Interestingly, unemployment rates in rural areas are much lower at 0.8 per
cent overall. The relatively higher unemployment rates of youths in Phnom Penh and other urban areas may
reflect rural-to-urban migration in search of employment. Likewise, in low technology agriculture, there
appears still to be room for ‘one more pair of hands’.
When considering youth unemployment, its definition becomes important. Specifically, in the strictest
definition (“not working even for one hour last week and seeking work”), youth unemployment appears to
be low. However if a more relaxed definition (“those not working but available to work”) is used, a somewhat
different picture emerges (Table 5-10). Using this definition, the highest rates of unemployment appear to
also occur among educated youth.
58 Situation Analysis of Youth in Cambodia