News

On January 7, the Brookings Institution hosted a public briefing on recent findings released by the Middle East Youth Initiative on the theme of promoting economic and social inclusion of youth in the Middle East. A full transcript of the proceedings of the conference can be downloaded here.

The Middle East Youth Initiative hosted a panel on youth employment at this year's annual Economic Research Forum (ERF) conference, held in Cairo from 28th-30th December 2007. Below are main highlights from the panel hosted by the Initiative. For a comprehensive view of the ERF event, please visit their conference site.

The key to inclusion is investment in better understanding of youth transitions in the region, and bridging the gap between thinkers and development practitioners.

Middle East Youth Initiative quoted in Wall Street Journal.

"Shabab" is a popular word in Arabic which means youth. The Middle East Youth Initiative defines youth as those between the ages of 15 and 29.

Hizbullah may be calling protesters into the streets of Beirut. But Mazen Younes, a 26-year-old Lebanese marketing researcher, is more interested in getting married. Having a job that pays $2,000 a month--three times more than average--has a lot to do with it. That means, he says, "I may be able to marry before turning 30."

United Arab Emirates is the most competitive economy in the Arab world among the countries at the third and most advanced stage of development according to The Arab World Competitiveness Report 2007, released today by the World Economic Forum.

The Middle East Youth Initiative, a joint partnership of the Wolfensohn Center for Development and the Dubai School of Government, launches major efforts to address the challenges facing youth in the Middle East.

The Middle East Youth Initiative is a public briefing on January 7, 2:30 - 5:00, in the Falk Auditorium at the Brookings Institution, Washington DC.

By James D. Wolfensohn

No task is more urgent than providing hope to the 100 million young people between the ages of 15 and 29 in the Middle East.  If we provide them with the opportunity to lead constructive lives, they will build an exciting area of prosperity, stability and hope.  If they are frustrated and are unable to find work and build their families, there will be unrest, dissension and very possibly violence.