A Growing National Challenge.

Youth unemployment in Papua New Guinea (PNG) remains one of the country’s most pressing socio-economic challenges. With a rapidly growing youth population, many school leavers struggle to transition into formal employment, contributing to rising concerns about poverty, urban migration and social instability. Although official estimates suggest youth unemployment is relatively low, the reality on the ground points to widespread underemployment in the informal sector. 

According to the PNG National Research Institute (NRI), youth unemployment and underemployment in PNG are significantly higher than adult levels, with studies indicating that up to 62% of young people may be affected when informal and discouraged workers are included. This reflects a labour market where most youth are not absorbed into formal employment and instead rely on subsistence farming, casual labour, or the informal sector for survival. 

In January 2025, Prime Minister James Marape reiterated his government’s commitment to addressing youth unemployment, stating that “clear pathways” must be created through education reform, small and medium enterprise (SME) growth, overseas labour mobility, and skills training. Government initiatives include Flexible Open Distance Education (FODE), SME financing programs and labour mobility schemes with countries such as Australia and New Zealand. However, while these programs have created opportunities for some youth, critics argue that implementation remains uneven and has not matched the scale of demand in rural and urban centres. 

Recent labour data shows that PNG’s official youth unemployment rate is about 3.8% in 2024, according to World Bank modelled estimates. However, experts caution that this figure does not capture the large informal workforce, meaning real youth joblessness and underemployment are significantly higher than official statistics suggest.

Despite government commitments, PNG’s youth continue to face structural barriers, including limited job creation, skills mismatch and a small formal private sector. With over half of the population under the age of 25, the pressure on the labour market is expected to intensify in the coming years.

Ultimately, while policies and programs exist, the challenge remains whether PNG can scale up implementation fast enough to absorb its growing youth population into productive employment.

Can the country realistically create enough jobs to prevent a long-term generation trapped in informal work and unemployment?