Youth in Politics

The Swedish Institute in Alexandria (SwedAlex) in collaboration with the Danish Egyptian Dialogue Institute (DEDI) organized a forum titled “Prospects of Employment in the Region (MENA / Europe)” as part of its Youth in Politics (YIP) program where youth from different countries were invited to participate in the discussion
YIP is a platform for young people involved in politics and civil action in Europe and the Middle East, North Africa (MENA) with a focus on the countries in transition.
Youth from more 14 countries came together to discuss matters pertaining to Arab Spring uprisings as to opportunities versus threats created especially in the economic and political arenas.

Since the uprising in 2011, many countries in the MENA regions have undergone political change giving rise to a void that SwedAlex was quick to notice and offered a dialogue platform for youth to meet, discuss and share their insights and action plans.
The Youth in Politics program aims to build individual and organizational capacities, networks between active youth in MENA region and Europe, solidarity, and tolerance and to involve them in shaping a common future based on peace and justice. The main objective of the program is to encourage young people to be active citizens in decision-making and civil action as well as to foster mutual understanding and social cohesion between youth in the MENA region and Europe.
Youth in Politics discusses a different topic every year. This year’s topic is employment trends in the region and promotion of entrepreneurship.

Subjects focused on and extensively discussed included (but were not limited to):
1-  Partnerships aiming to create better job opportunities
2-  Actions taken to combat unemployment and their impact on economy
3-  Economic reports showing trends and indicators related to Arab Spring
4- SMEs and job creation in MENA region with a focus on women entrepreneurship 5-  Some ideas to consider when formulating national policies for employment

International organizations represented were:

• The World Bank
• International Labour Organization (ILO)
• Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty in Egypt (FNF)

NGOs represented included:

• Education for Employment (EFE)
• Mercy Corps (MC)
• National Employment Pact