Young People in Arab Countries: Promoting Opportunities and Participation

This paper focuses on two major youth transitions: those to employment and active participation in their societies. It provides evidence on the main trends in young people’s employment and social outcomes in Arab countries of the South Mediterranean (SMED),1 as well as an overview of current policy responses on youth employment and participation. The emphasis on Arab Mediterranean countries is largely due to the greater availability of comparable data for these countries than for other Arab countries in the MENA region. It is intended to help policy makers in MENA countries develop more accurately targeted youth policies and investment plans at a time when awareness of youth challenges is very high.