Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) Among the Youth in Indonesia: The Effects of Social Activities, Access to Information, and Language Skills on NEET Youth

Abstract

This article attempts to describe the prevalence of NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) among youth aged 15-24 in Indonesia. Those grouped as NEET, in general, live in a high risk and vulnerable condition, and many of them face social injustice. Previous analysis on NEET in Indonesia utilized labor force surveys; these studies emphasized on employment and education background of individuals. Whereas this article constructs NEET from the SUSENAS (National Socio-Economic Survey) and related MSBP (Module of Social, Cultural, and Education) of 2015, which are household surveys. We found that almost one in four youth in Indonesia are neither engage in employment nor education or training. NEET is more prevalent among youth women, those residing in rural areas, and among rural married women. The richness of information collected in these surveys enable us to analyze factors affecting Indonesian youth to be NEET beyond those related to work-related issues. By using logit regression analysis, this article explains reasons for youth being NEET based on their engagement in social activities, access to information, and capability to read and write in Bahasa Indonesia and foreign languages.