Daunting challenges lie before the Arab-speaking workforce today. Forty million jobs must be created in the next decade to employ the region, home to the highest rate of youth unemployment – not to mention that many countries are still undergoing a period of political transition. The fundamental question about job creation now is where these countries should be headed and how they are getting there.
Moving to a knowledge and innovation-based economy is an idea whose time has come. The links between knowledge and innovation (and by extension, to productivity) are undisputed. And in the same way that productivity is the enabler of an economy, education can be considered to be a fundamental pillar of the knowledge economy. …
All in all, if a move is to be made in the direction of a knowledge economy in MENA, investing in high quality education is essential. This is the key to creating good and decent jobs that are so needed in the region today. The STEP meaning Skills Toward Employment and Productivity approach provides a simple yet comprehensive way to look at skills development for more jobs and higher productivity. It also helps to orient the areas of action needed in the Arab world. These issues, and more, are further explored in the World Bank’s forthcoming report: Transforming Arab Economies: Traveling the Knowledge and Innovation Road (World Bank 2013). Full post