Designing an innovative diaspora youth mentorship programme in Somalia
Somalia has one of the most severe youth unemployment rates globally, reaching 34.23% in 2025. More than 60% of young people are not in education, employment, or training (NEET), and many who are employed work in informal or underpaid roles. Female youth are disproportionately affected, deepening poverty and contributing to social and political instability. At the same time, Somalia’s demographic profile presents a significant opportunity with a median age of 18 and 75% of the population under 30 and an increasing higher education enrolment. With one of the largest diasporas estimated at 2 million nationals abroad, including highly skilled professionals who are motivated to contribute to national development, it offers an additional strategic advantage.
Diaspora engagement in Somalia remains largely fragmented and project-based, with no coordinated national mechanism to systematically connect Somali professionals abroad with young people at home. To address this gap, the Department of Diaspora Affairs (DoDA) is seeking to establish a practical framework to address youth unemployment in Somalia by improving links between education, labour market needs, and diaspora expertise.
The project will support the transition from fragmented mentoring initiatives toward a structured and scalable national model by strengthening the Department of Diaspora Affairs’ capacity to coordinate diaspora and youth collaboration, promote skills development, and create clearer pathways to employment in priority sectors.
Programme of activities
The online peer exchange will bring together representatives from selected peer institutions to facilitate peer learning and knowledge sharing on mentoring programme design and implementation. It will draw on existing mentoring resources and previous experiences to provide practical examples and inform the subsequent co-design of Somalia’s own diaspora mentoring scheme.
This activity focuses on developing an implementable diaspora mentorship programme for youth skills development in Somalia. It establishes the design and coordination framework needed to align the programme with national priorities and strengthen collaboration with potential institutional partners, including universities and innovation hubs. The activity also provides operational support across key stages of the mentoring cycle.
The objective is to assess interest in launching a diaspora mentoring scheme and to advance the Department of Diaspora Affairs towards independently implementing a first pilot cycle as a proof of concept. The activity also supports the identification and registration of potential mentors and ensures that the results are integrated into the Mentorship Programme Design Pack and implementation roadmap.