In low-income countries most people are employed, but despite working hard they remain poor. Poor education, inadequate technologies, lack of infrastructure, adverse climate, pay below the living wage, misguided investment and growth strategies are among the causes of low earnings and persistent poverty in low-income countries. In this course, students learn about the challenges of self-employment and wage-employment in rural and urban areas of low-income countries, as well as of formal and informal employment. This course looks at policies and strategies that can be implemented to generate more and better jobs and to help the working poor earn enough to move out of poverty. Students discuss case studies and best practice by non-profit, private, and public stakeholders. Throughout the course students will focus their attention on a specific low-income country of their choice, on which they become “experts”, enriching class discussions with their acquired country-specific knowledge. The course is framed by Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8, which calls for promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. Ideally, participants select this course after having taken SJS 100, as a deepening of their knowledge on SDG8.
- Teacher: Rossana Galli