18 years have passed since the MIF began working with youth in Latin America and the Caribbean. Since then, a whole new generation has been born. The risks this generation faces are formidable: those who lack skills and connections will often be shut out of the formal economy. Fortunately, the opportunities rival the risks. The energy, diversity, and potential of young people can be transformed into a vibrant engine of growth for the region. The MIF remains committed to the critical goals of supporting access to jobs and business opportunities for this new generation of youth.

"Give Youth a Chance: An Agenda for Action" a report just published by the Multilateral Investment Fund, a member of the Inter-American Development Group is the result of a joint effort where we analyzed important lessons learned during the 18 years of experience we have funding over 120 youth employment and entrepreneurship training projects around the region.

This Agenda will guide our work with young people over the next five years. In implementing this agenda, the MIF will target poor and low-income youth between the ages of 16 -29 years who lack employability skills and are either unemployed or working in the informal sector. Particular emphasis will be placed on young women, and youth from violence-prone areas, who are considered to be “at risk”of or already engaging in risky behavior such as dropping out of school, neither working nor studying, teen pregnancy, crime, substance abuse, etc.

The MIF Youth Agenda for Action is comprised of five main elements:
1) Scale,
2) Innovation,
3) Results, Evaluation and Knowledge Sharing,
4) Youth Empowerment,
5) Gender

These five elements will be incorporated throughout future MIF youth employment and entrepreneurship interventions.The primary measures of success for this agenda for action will include the number of trained youth who are placed in jobs, start a business, and/or go back to school, as well as indicators on the quality of employment and increase in income.