CONFERENCE ON:
CHILDREN & YOUTH IN THE MENA REGION:
TOWARDS UNLEASHING THEIR POTENTIALS
6-10 December, 2010, Monroe Hotel, Beirut, Lebanon
Introduction:
The most evident and challenging aspect of the MENA region's demographic profile is its youth bulge, young people are the fastest growing segment of the population. About sixty of the population is under the age of 25, making this region one of the most youthful in the world. This can be an important opportunity that should not to be missed. Considerable efforts are made by countries in the region to tackle children and youth issues. But, much more efforts are needed if this great historical opportunity is to be tapped. This may be achieved merely, if the potential of children and youth is unleashed. A first, and essential, step in that direction is to remove some of the obstacles hindering the realization of the full potential of children and youth.
Although this high proportion of young people is, and will be for some time, an unprecedented asset for the region, yet they are seen sometimes as problematic, and they experience relatively low level of participation, and therefore less utilization of their potentials, in different aspects of life. Multidimensional efforts are needed to change this view.
Despite some improvement in quality of life in some countries, according to the Arab Human Development Report (AHDR) 2009, there are still many people [especially children and youth] in the MENA region living insecure lives, and others living under persistent pressures that inhibit them from realizing their potentials. A World Bank report points out that “… a large segment of the Arab youth continues to remain outside of the mainstream of economic and social life.” Other World Bank studies show that “ youth unemployment rates in MENA are among the highest in the World”. In addition, “MENA youth spend lengthy periods in temporary or intermittent work and spells of joblessness before permanently entering stable employment.” A sizeable proportion (about forty percent) of those who are employed (both youth and adults) earn two dollars or less a day. Therefore, the proportion of youth earning two dollars or less a day is higher than forty percent. On top of that, young people are facing other problems such as health, school drop-outs, child labor, street children, marginalization, and limited community participation in public issues that absolutely deter them from the realization of their potentials.
Facing these challenges in the realization of children and youth potentials, The Middle East and North Africa Child Protection Initiative (AUDI MENA CPI), in partnership and support from the World Bank and other international, regional, national organizations and local authorities put children and youth at the top of its agenda. By promoting dialogue and knowledge sharing and supporting interventions at the city level to improve the well-being of children and youth, especially the vulnerable and disadvantaged ones, another step is walked in the right direction. This is part of the mandate of AUDI MENA CPI which aims at:
i. promoting effective policy dialogue on youth employment in the MENA region mainly at the local level,
ii. building capacity of people working with children and youth at the local level, and
iii. encouraging and supporting ongoing child and youth protection initiatives at the city level.
AUDI MENA CPI in partnership with:
· The World Bank (WB),
· The Global Partnership for Youth Employment (GPYE): International Youth Foundation (IYF), Youth Employment Network (YEN), Understanding Children’s Work (UCW), and
· Local authorities.
And in collaboration with:
· Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organizations (AGFUND),
· Al Waleed bin Talal Foundation,
· The Islamic Development Bank (ISDB),
· Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD),
· Opec Fund for International Development (OFID),
· Young Men Christian Association of Lebanon(YMCA), and
· Questscope,
has launched several activities and programs to improve the social and economic conditions of children and youth living in urban areas and encourage their inclusion and integration. One of these activities is this conference which aims to highlight the potentials of children and youth, the obstacles facing them in realizing their potentials, and ways to address these obstacles.
The Beirut conference comes as another step in effectively engaging stakeholders in the region, especially at the local level, in children and youth issues. International experience and expertise will be presented, in addition to local and regional ones, to further enhance the chances of adopting effective programs for children and youth wellbeing.
Purpose and Objectives:
To help in addressing these children and youth opportunity issues and understanding the obstacles facing them, AUDI MENA CPI is organizing an international conference in Beirut, Lebanon under the title “Children and Youth in MENA: Towards Unleashing their Potentials”. This conference will bring together concerned stakeholders involved in children and youth issues, in a policy dialogue, to share knowledge, and exchange experiences that will help in designing initiatives aimed at improving the living conditions, the active participation and social integration of children and youth.
The conference aims at providing an enabling forum for:
a) Sharing knowledge regarding the situation, opportunities and challenges facing children and youth in MENA,
b) Identifying stakeholders’, youth’s, local authorities’ and municipalities’ roles in youth employment, employability and active participation,
c) Disseminating of findings and best practices undertaken by different partners and stakeholders in MENA to address children and youth potentials, as well as the lessons learned from the partnership,
d) Assessing the impact of activities, evaluating the initiatives and projects addressing youth employment and employability,
Conference themes:
a) Youth potentials, both social and economical.
b) Youth employment and employability.
c) Youth participation and social integration.
d) Success stories, lessons learned and best practices in engaging youth towards realizing their potentials, and
e) Evaluation Clinic: This side event will be conducted by YEN to bring youth employment practitioners’ experience on impact evaluation through the analysis of live cases.
The language of the conference:
Arabic and English are the official languages of the conference, and simultaneous translation is available.
Conference:
Online Registration : English & Arabic
Concept Note: English & Arabic
Conference Agenda: English & Arabic
Brochure: English & Arabic
Conference Invitation: English &Arabic
To download Registration: English & Arabic
Beirut Conference Report (English)
Beirut Conference Report (Arabic)
Beirut Conference Presentations
OLM Training workshop:
YEN Evaluation Clinic Registration
YEN Evaluation Clinic Report