News Releases
Youth Knowledge Consortium Launched to Promote Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship in the Arab World at Doha Summit
DOHA, QATAR, June 2, 2008 — A Youth Knowledge Consortium was launched by major regional and international organizations at the Doha Summit, entitled "Young People and Employment in the Arab World," to accelerate the Middle East and North Africa region's ability to better understand and respond to the economic challenges facing young people.
The Youth Knowledge Consortium will serve as a hub of scholarship, research and thought leadership to support youth policy and initiatives. The Consortium was announced at the Doha Summit, organized under the leadership of Her Highness Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, founder and chair of Silatech. The founding partners of the Consortium include: ImagineNations Group, Silatech, Wolfensohn Center for Development at Brookings Institution, the Dubai School of Government, Gallup, the Global Partnership for Youth Investment, International Labour Organization and the Issam Fares Institute at the American University of Beirut (AUB). The Consortium will be joined by other like-minded organizations over time.
Youth in the Middle East and North Africa (15-29 years old) comprise over one third of the region's population, representing a tremendous asset in ushering an era of sustainable growth. However, new research suggests that the combined costs of youth unemployment for 11 countries in the region are as high as US$25 billion a year, or 2.3 percent of GDP. To meet the urgency and scale of the youth challenge, the Consortium will generate new and innovative solutions to address youth unemployment and improve young peoples' access to entrepreneurship opportunities.
In the coming months, Silatech will convene Consortium members to launch several cutting edge initiatives, such as a youth "job readiness" index; new research to address unemployment and skills mismatch; action-oriented new research to stimulate financial access for young entrepreneurs; and dialogue with policymakers, civil society groups, government officials and the private sector to develop effective policies and programs.
Founder of the Wolfensohn Center for Development and former World Bank president, James D. Wolfensohn, endorsed the Consortium: "No task is more urgent than providing hope to the 100 million young people in the Middle East and North Africa. If we provide them with the opportunity to lead constructive lives, they will build a stable and prosperous future for the region. As part of our ongoing work at the Middle East Youth Initiative, we look forward to cooperation with Silatech that will lead to real impact on the lives of young men and women."
"The creation of Silatech came from a leading and distinguished Arab character. It's a distinct effort in a notable time since unemployment in the Arab world amounts today to 14 percent. This is a phenomenon that threatens the younger generation if not addressed immediately. We believe in the effective role of Silatech to mobilize all efforts, and we also assure our commitment to this ambitious program. We are confident that this experience will bring success and outstanding results," said Mr. Ahmed Luqman, director-general of the Arab Labour Organization.
Nabil Alyousef, director-general of the Executive Office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and executive president of the Dubai School of Government, also supported the initiative, asserting that "tackling the complexity of youth challenges in the region requires collaboration between the best thinkers and practitioners in the field. The Dubai School of Government is committed to contributing toward this effort."
Dr. Pawan Patil, World Bank chief executive of the Global Partnership for Youth Investment and senior economist, noted: "The Youth Knowledge Consortium will contribute to addressing youth unemployment challenge across the Arab World where young people, supported by good policies and institutions will not only be able to cope but to flourish - and in the process contribute to a future of hope and opportunity for all generations".
CONSORTIUM PARTNERS:
Gallup
For more than 70 years, Gallup has built its reputation on delivering relevant, timely, and visionary research on what humans around the world think and feel. Using impeccable data, its advisers assist leaders in identifying and monitoring critical economic and behavioral indicators that are vital to their strategic plans.
ImagineNations Group
The ImagineNations® Group is a global alliance of social entrepreneurs, thought leaders, investors, financial institutions, global brands, media and organizations-all working together to empower and inspire a new generation of successful youth investment and employment. ImagineNations and its partners are providing young adults (ages 15-29) in the developing world with opportunities to gain access to employment and livelihood through various incentives, business development services, coaching and/or capital for their entrepreneurial ideas.
Issam Fares Institute, American University of Beirut
The Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs (IFI) at the American University of Beirut (AUB) aims to harness the policy-related research of AUB's internationally respected faculty in order to achieve several goals: to raise the quality of public policy-related debate and decision-making in the Arab World and abroad, to enhance the Arab World's input into international affairs, and to enrich the quality of interaction among scholars, officials and civil society actors in the Middle East and abroad.
In the established tradition of AUB, IFI is a neutral, dynamic, civil, and open space where people representing all viewpoints in society can gather and discuss significant issues of the day, anchored in a long-standing commitment to mutual understanding and high quality research.
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is devoted to advancing opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Its main aims are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment opportunities, enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue in handling work-related issues.
In promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labour rights, the organization continues to pursue its founding mission that labour peace is essential to prosperity. Today, the ILO helps advance the creation of decent jobs and the kinds of economic and working conditions that give working people and business people a stake in lasting peace, prosperity and progress.
Middle East Youth Initiative of Brookings and Dubai School of Government
The Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEYI) was founded through a partnership between the Wolfensohn Center for Development at the Brookings Institution and the Dubai School of Government.
The Wolfensohn Center analyzes how resources, knowledge and implementation capabilities can be combined toward broad-based economic and social change in a four-speed world.
The Dubai School of Government is a research and teaching institution focusing on public policy in the Arab world, established in 2004 under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai.
The first policy research program of its kind, MEYI is wholly devoted to the economic and social inclusion of youth in the Middle East. Its objective is to accelerate the international community's ability to better understand and respond to the changing needs of young people in the Middle East. By creating an international alliance of academics, policymakers, youth leaders and leading thinkers from the private sector and civil society, MEYI aims to develop and promote a progressive agenda of youth inclusion.
Silatech
'Silatech,' which means 'your connection' in Arabic represents HH Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned's mission to support the creation of new jobs needed in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Silatech's goal will be to support a unique and comprehensive strategy that includes providing links to jobs and placements, a call center, market-related training, access to business development services and capital for aspiring entrepreneurs, and employment attachments such as internships and apprenticeships.
World Bank - Global Partnership for Youth Investment
The Global Partnership for Youth Investment (GPYI) is a formal and enduring relationship between public, private and civil society organizations that share a common mission - to improve the lives of young people (with special emphasis on the poor adolescent girls and young women) through their economic advancement and social inclusion. GPYI helps local stakeholders to conceptualize, incubate and finance home grown scaled impact for young people in employment, entrepreneurships, citizenship and empowerment.