Local Authorities Have an Important Role in Empowering Young in the Arab Region, Says Ms. Obaid

DUBAI — Young people, who make up the majority of Arab population, represent a great opportunity and an important wealth of new energy that local and national authorities must invest in, said Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, an Under Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund.

Ms. Obaid’s remarks were included in her keynote speech at the opening of a regional conference entitled, "Urban Children and Youth in the MENA Region: Addressing Priorities in Education", which started in Dubai on Monday. The conference is the third in a series on urban children and youth in Middle East and North Africa.

While laws in the Arab region proclaim the right of young people to receive essential education regardless of their gender, the gap between young men and young women in attaining education at the higher levels continues to grow, said Ms. Obaid. Illiteracy – an important barrier to development – has continued to increase in the region, particularly among women, with a large percentage of Arab women still illiterate. These trends tend to be found in countries with lower national income and higher fertility rates.

Ms. Obaid presented a series of recommendations to local and municipal authorities on ways to embrace young people in their work. As most young people live in urban areas, she said, it was necessary for municipal authorities to understand their aspirations and to include them in the mechanisms to tackle problems in their localities.

With a continuous increase in the number of youth school dropouts, said Ms. Obaid, municipal councils must invest heavily in updating their education curricula and to better develop young peoples’ life skills by marketing schools as educational institutions and community centres.

Ms. Obaid also noted that the cultural and societal makeup of the Arab world did not sanction dangerous and irresponsible sexual behaviour, making it essential for young people to receive more information and counselling to obtain a better and safer understanding of this subject. Thus, municipal authorities should take a lead role in continuing to develop a proper reproductive health culture and responsible behaviour.

Ms. Obaid’s statement also included an overview of the demographic transitions in the Arab region, which have affected young people. She also reminded participants that the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo underscored the importance of eliminating discrimination between genders at all levels, especially in the right to good education.

The conference was organized by the Dubai Municipality, the Arab Urban Development Institute and the World Bank, in cooperation with the Child Protection Initiative, Med Child and UNFPA.

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UNFPA is the world’s largest multilateral source of population assistance. Making motherhood safer for all women is at the heart of the Fund’s mandate.

Contact Information:

Omar Gharzeddine
Tel.: +1 (212) 297-5028
Email: gharzeddine@unfpa.org