More than 600 chat participants from around the world took part in live online dialogue on the Arab world
World Bank to launch the first Arab Regional Agenda for Improving Education Quality in Tunis
Several chat participants highlighted the need to make quality education and employment top priorities
January 11, 2012 - Education, jobs, governance, and infrastructure dominated a live online chat with World Bank Vice President Inger Andersen after a year of challenges and change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Among the main concerns during the hour and 20 minute World Bank Live discussion in English and Arabic: how to reform education, create jobs and foster political freedom while maintaining stability.
Inger Andersen, World Bank Vice President
“I have found that in most of the 160 comments we received [prior to the event], it was about jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs, and then some more jobs. And I think that this is spot on,” said Andersen in response to a chat participant. “But jobs will come from growth and from stability, as you rightly say. So governments constantly need to juggle between short-term job creation on the public purse and longer-term equitable and sustainable growth.”
The event was held as countries grapple with political and economic change in the wake of the Arab Spring. In the past year, governments have been overthrown in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, and protests have taken place across the region.
We do need to ensure that the education system graduates strong skills so that the young people are able to compete, not just in their national economy, but in the global economy.
— Inger Andersen, World Bank Vice President for Middle East and North Africa region
Andersen was joined in the chat by 640 people primarily located in Egypt, the United States, the U.K., Germany and Saudi Arabia. They described themselves as economists, human rights activists, and members of nongovernmental and civil society organizations.
“What we need is 'long term' strategies for change in our part of the world! and not 'one-off' activities in response to the governments' mode!” said Fatima Sallam, a chat participant from Yemen.
With both joblessness and the youth population growing, several on the chat highlighted the need to make quality education and employment top priorities in the medium and long-term. Though many young people have a high level of education, international education surveys indicate there is “much room for improvement” on the quality of education in the region, Andersen said.
“We do need to ensure that the education system graduates strong skills so that the young people are able to compete, not just in their national economy, but in the global economy,” she said.
The World Bank will launch the first Arab Regional Agenda for Improving Education Quality next week in Tunis in an effort to build a new generation of skilled and engaged citizens. The agenda has already been endorsed by the Arab Ministers of Education and a large number of partners.
Education, job creation and political freedoms were among the topics discussed in the live online chat. (Photo Credit: Arne Hoel)
“EDUCATION is the key solution in the Middle East, Egypt especially,” said chat participant Sherine Abdelbaki of the business and civil society communities in Cairo. “I believe not only formal education, but a shift needs to be made towards technical education (like polytechnic schools in Germany & France) in order to help create jobs and create a sense of pride in such jobs, as well as 'creative' education, in the sense that innovative, modern methods of education are needed in order to create quick wins in villages & lower income areas.”
Andersen said freedom of information and the involvement of civil society are critical to bring about the kind of education --and other -- reforms that are needed.
“We agree that the Arab Spring has demonstrated the strength of the CSO [civil society] community, and it is for that reason that we here at the Bank are working on establishing a facility that can fund and work with CSOs,” said Andersen. Bank President Robert Zoellick announced the CSO facility in a speech last spring.
Andersen said that initially the Bank’s four key priorities in the region center around: (1) creating jobs. (2) increasing economic and social inclusion. (3) accelerating equitable and sustainable growth and (4) strengthening governance. Greater gender equality could also speed reform, she added.
“I'm a woman myself, I think that women hold up half the sky. By excluding women from economic, social, political, trade activities, etc -- half of the society is left out and, as a consequence, development is greatly slowed down.”
Chat and Twitter participants generally welcomed the chance to weigh in on the issues. “Very impressed w/ @WorldBank #MENA live chat w/ VP Inger Andersen & looking fwd 2 many future country- & issue-specific #CivilSociety chats!” said @BICmena.
Andersen said the Bank would hold similar future events at http://live.worldbank.org that may focus on single issues or countries.
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