Youth unemployment in the Illawarra region

The Illawarra region of New South Wales, centred on Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama is characterised by coal, steel and port facilities all of which have undergone extensive ‘restructuring’ in the last two decades. As a region, the Illawarra’s economic structure has traditionally focused on the manufacturing sector but in recent years has diversified with education, information technology and tourism forming an integral part of its composition.