The Cali Cómo Vamos Program published a special report 2021 on the quality of life of the city’s youth between 14 and 28 years of age. Among the main results, the report indicates that in Cali there are more than 531,000 young people, representing a quarter of the city’s population. Although the article of Cali Cómo Vamos covers different aspects of the quality of life of young people, such as education, health, mobility, security, among others, this report focuses more on the situation of poverty among the young population.
According to the above- mentioned report, for every 100 young people who live in the Cali-Yumbo Metropolitan Area, 87 live in strata 1, 2 or 3. And 65 out of those 100 live in strata 1 and 2 (low-income households). Poverty among this population group is concerning. In 2020, 39 out of 100 young people in Cali-Yumbo lived in poverty and 14 out of 100 lived in extreme poverty.
In addition, the Covid-19 pandemic made the situation worse by increasing the rates of poverty among the young population. These high rates of poverty, together with unemployment, are a time bomb. According the Department of National Statistics (DANE), 28% of youths in Cali- Yumbo are unemployed. It is vital to establish income generation programs.