Social Entrepreneurship in the Middle East: Advancing Youth Innovation and Development through Better Policies and Practices

On April 28, the Middle East Youth Initiative and Silatech hosted the launch of a new report titled “Social Entrepreneurship in the Middle East: Toward Sustainable Development for the Next Generation.” The report is the first in-depth study of its kind addressing the state of social entrepreneurship and social investment in the Middle East and its potential for the region’s 110 million youth. The report contains specific recommendations on how the activities of the region’s most promising young social entrepreneurs can be nourished and supported by domestic, regional and international stakeholders.

Building on the momentum generated from the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship, planned for April 26 and 27 in Washington, DC, a panel of experts addressed the potential for social entrepreneurship to contribute to human, and especially youth, development in the region. Kemal Derviş, vice president and director of the Global Economy and Development program at Brookings, provided introductory remarks, followed by Tarik Yousef, dean of the Dubai School of Government and nonresident senior fellow at the Wolfensohn Center for Development at Brookings; Sonal Shah, director of White House Office of Social Innovation; and a panel of experts.

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Event audio (Brookings) >>

PARTICIPANTS

Introductory Remarks

Kemal Derviş
Vice President and Director, Global Economy and Development, The Brookings Institution

Featured Speakers

Tarik Yousef
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Global Economy and Development, Wolfensohn Center for Development, Middle East Youth Initiative
Dean, The Dubai School of Government

Sonal Shah
Director, White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation

Panelists

Ehaab Abdou
Advisor, Middle East Youth Initiative at The Brookings Institution

Nada al-Nashif
Regional Director, International Labor Organization, Regional Office for Arab States

Fadi Ghandour
CEO and Founder, ARAMEX

Jane Nelson
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Global Economy and Development
Director, Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School

Ahmed Younis
Director of Strategic Partnerships and Communications, Silatech