EXECUTIVE SUMMARY __________________________________________________________________________ respective levels of authority, work as quickly as possible towards creating an environment that enables women to play a role in, and to benefit from, development. This can be done by building their capacity through education and health, as well as through equitable access to employment and other sources of wealth. 3.5.4 Training, assessment and involvement of the youth 3.86 Benin is a country with a very young population. In 2002, some 46.8% of the population was under 15 years of age1. The youth are the role players in the building of the Benin of tomorrow. They are the agents of change necessary for the development of the country. If they are to play this role, they need to believe in, and have a place in, society – in political, economic and sociocultural terms. As soon as they lose confidence in society and no longer see their future as lying within it, they begin to question society, which could even lead to its demise. The government has made significant efforts in terms of education in traditional schools and in technical and specialised professional schools in the major centres of the country, as well as in terms of employment. However, these efforts are not adequate in the face of strong demand for both training and employment. 3.87 The APR Panel recommends that the government pursue the financing of primary school education and continue to raise public awareness on the advantages of sending children to school, especially in departments in the north, like Alibori, Atacora and Borgou. It is also recommended that the government finance apprenticeships and technical and vocational training schools in all departments, so as to reduce the cost of these training programmes. These measures will contribute to the preparation of the youth for their entry into the Beninese society of tomorrow. 3.5.5 Poverty and access to resources 3.88 Poverty continues to be endemic and even continues to grow in respect of vulnerable sectors of society and in certain geographical areas, especially in rural areas. Access to basic social services, such as education, health, drinking water and sanitation, reproductive health, energy and decent housing, still represents an enormous problem for a major portion of the population. 3.89 Policies and programmes have been implemented to improve the access of Beninese to basic social services. Progress has been made, but the results were inadequate in the face of the actual needs of the population. This was due mainly to the fact that these programmes were implemented in the context of financial austerity, and were dictated by policies of stabilisation and structural adjustment. The state has remained solely ‘responsible’ for the supply of development services and resources. This situation makes it difficult to ensure their provision in the long term, given the limited resources of the state. 1 Third General Census of the Population and Housing (RGPH). October 2003. Summary of analyses. Demographic Education Division, INSAE: Cotonou. Page 7. 26