San Francisco Frontiers - Guinea-Bissau youth hope presidential vote brings better life

Since leaving school, the 20-year-old has turned to washing cars to support himself and his parents.

While he had once dreamed of becoming finance minister, a lack of opportunity and money proved a reality check on his career goals, as is the case with many young people in Guinea-Bissau.

The small west African nation is one of the poorest in the world and around 40 percent of the population live in extreme poverty.

Young people under the age of 25 represent 65 percent of the country's population of 2.2 million.

"I passed my final school exam this year but I couldn't afford further education," Souare told AFP.

"Instead of staying at home and relying on my parents for everything, I preferred to come here to wash cars and earn some money."

Souare nevertheless remains hopeful that the next president will improve conditions for the country's young people.

Guinea-Bissau will elect a new president on Sunday, seeking to turn the page on a tumultuous history of coups and unrest.

Some 860,000 voters will choose between 12 candidates, including incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, who is favourite to land a second five-year term.

The election takes place without the main opposition party or candidate, after both submitted their candidacies too late.

- Difficulties -

Souare was among approximately a dozen young men in the heart of Bissau cleaning two rows of cars parked along the curb.

Soapy liquid dripped onto the pavement, mixing with rubbish thrown on the ground, as the young men used large, worn rags to wipe down the vehicles.

The work, they said, earned them up to 7,000 CFA francs (about $12) a day.

Nearby, Embalo's supporters blasted loud music out into the street.

Many young people interviewed by AFP said they expected Sunday's victor to create jobs and make vocational training more accessible.

They all said they planned to vote.

"It's hard to find work", Maxime Simao Ca told AFP.

"The new president needs to focus on job creation and vocational training. That could make it easier for young people to enter the work force".

Neia Te, a 30-year-old mother, said she walks nearly seven kilometres (four miles) each day selling fruit from the tray she balances on her head, earning at most 3,000 CFA francs.

"It's very hard", she said. "But I have to do this to have something to bring home at the end of the day."

Te said she planned to cast her vote on Sunday to "make a difference".

Simao said he wass constantly stressed about his future.

He dreams of one day reaching Europe but not via the treacherous Atlantic migration route.

"That's not part of the way young people in Guinea-Bissau do things," he said.

J.Scott--SFF