The
number of unemployed youth worldwide decreased gradually from 2010 to
2019, but then increased in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As of 2025, there were an estimated 66.94 million unemployed youths
between 15 and 24 years worldwide.
Highest youth unemployment globally
The countries with the highest rates of youth not in education, employment, or training (NEET)
include Niger, Kiribati, Guyana, Somalia, and Afghanistan. While there
is geographic diversity in this group, each of these countries is either
low-income or low-middle income. Moreover, each has their own set of
challenges contributing to high NEET rates. For example, in Afghanistan,
this can be attributed to conflict and the 2021 Taliban takeover. In
Kiribati and other Pacific Island nations, they face high levels of
brain drain to larger economies such as Australia, New Zealand, and the
United States.
Lowest youth unemployment globally
On the contrary, countries with the lowest youth NEET rates
include Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Iceland, and Malta. Factors
such as well-structured vocational training programs and affordable
university education contribute to low NEET rates. However, these
countries still face their own challenges. For example, one contributing
factor to such low NEET rates in Japan is the overall shrinkage of the Japanese population,
which is simultaneously aging. While unemployment remains low in the
country, it faces the potential crisis of not having enough people to
support the labor market.
Statista – Number of young unemployed people worldwide (2010–2025)
