Özbilgehan: Youth Unemployment Has Become an Unignorable Crisis

“This situation is the result of years of systematically ignoring the needs of young people in political decision-making,” Özbilgehan said, highlighting that the declining employment of young women has pushed them out of both professional and social life.

He stressed that steps to transition from education to employment have been repeatedly postponed, and young people’s participation in productive processes has been limited to short-term, stopgap measures.

Youth Congresses Highlight Brain Drain and Economic Migration

Referring to recent Youth Congresses, Özbilgehan stated:
“Our congresses have clearly identified brain drain and economic migration as natural outcomes of a system that gives young people little hope. The Third Youth Congress unanimously recognized brain drain as a concrete reality in our country and decided that structured internship programs could effectively reduce youth unemployment. The Second Youth Congress emphasized economic migration as a serious problem, highlighted opportunities and gender inequalities among youth, and raised concerns about the reliability of official economic statistics.”

Limited Internships, Insufficient Vocational Training, and Low Employment Prospects

Özbilgehan called for an expansion of structured internship opportunities, noting that current programs remain limited. He also criticized insufficient vocational training and gender-based barriers that hinder young women’s workforce participation.

“Local companies posting job ads with ‘over 40 only’ reflects an employment mindset that preemptively excludes young people. Structural measures to facilitate youth participation in the labor market must be implemented without delay,” Özbilgehan said.

He concluded: “Otherwise, our country will continue to consume its own future. We will continue to fight with all our strength to make the voice of youth heard and to change this course.”