Sri Lanka youth union proposes setting up a National Job Creation Front

Sri Lanka's Marxist party Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) affiliated Socialist Youth Union (SYU) says the government needs to address the problem of unemployed youth in the country.

The SYU has said that the government has defined an individual as being employed if he works two of the seven days in the week. Therefore, official figures have shown unemployment to be 5.9 percent, while the youth of Sri Lanka, 15-29 years of age, experience an unemployment level of 15.8 percent.

SYU Head and former JVP MP Bimal Ratnayake has told the local media that the Union contradicts these figures because when accounting for all factors unemployment amongst the youth stands at a much higher 30 to 35 percent.

Ratnayake has said the government has failed to effectively counter the high unemployment rate in the country. He has further attacked the government's definition of employment saying that for an individual to be considered employed if he works only two days a week is unrealistic.

The SYU has proposed setting up of a National Job Creation Front to address the unemployment problem. The Front is to assist young people in starting up their own businesses.