Young, Educated, and Out of Work: The Middle East’s Jobless Generation
Friday, April 12, 2013
Session Description
In the MENA region, 30% of youth are unemployed—twice the global average. Failure to harness the intelligence and enthusiasm of these young people jeopardises not only the wellbeing of this generation, but the stability of Middle Eastern societies and the region at large. The problem is not simply a lack of jobs. Available opportunities require skills that young people today do not have. While entrepreneurship is crucial to job creation, first-time failure rates are strikingly high. Join this session for a vital exploration of approaches for strengthening MENA’s educational, employment and entrepreneurial ecosystems.
Time & Location
Time:
12:30 - 14:15, Friday, April 12, 2013
BST
Location:
Lecture Theatre 5
Speakers
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Moderator
Consultant, Wordwyre
I've been working at the forefront of international strategic communications for more than a decade, with expertise in development, peace-building and human rights. I believe in the power of partnerships for change across non-profit, public and private sectors. Researcher, writer, moderator and adviser on high level campaigns and events, I'm based in London with a global outlook. Now an independent consultant, I have previously held senior roles at The Elders, ONE, Crisis Action and International Crisis Group. I am a trustee of Videre est Credere.
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Speaker
Founder, EzSakan
Reham Di’bas received her BA from Birzeit University in Computer Systems Engineering. She started her career in social media at Bazinga, a local Palestinian startup. Living in Ramallah, Palestine, she became more engaged in the local entrepreneurial community. This experience gave her the drive to start working on her own startup, a website to ease some of the pains Palestinian university students are facing. She is now a full time entrepreneur, an amateur writer and a businesswoman in the making.
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Speaker
Chairman of the Board, TechWadi
Dr. Ossama Hassanein is an entrepreneur, mentor, and venture capitalist. Over the last 30 years, he has managed $1 billion of international technology funds in diverse leadership roles including Chairman of Technocom Ventures in Paris, President of Newbridge Networks Holding in Ottawa, and Chairman of the Rising Tide Fund in Silicon Valley. He was chairman or cofounder of seven leading-edge digital communication startups in the US, UK, Switzerland and France whose combined market value at exit exceeded $2 billion. He currently serves on the board of Bank of the West in San Francisco, is chairman of TechWadi, and charter member of the C-100, both Silicon-Valley based associations dedicated to mentoring and financing MENA and Canadian entrepreneurs.
Dr. Hassanein is the Willard Brown Distinguished Visiting Professor at the American University in Cairo School of Business. He lectured at Stanford University, the University of San Diego, University of Santa Clara and U.C. Berkeley.
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Speaker
Senior Fellow, Aspen Institute
Jamie McAuliffe is a the founding Director of the Global Opportunity Youth Network (GOYN), housed at the The Aspen Institute. Jamie launched the GOYN in partnership with Prudential Financial, YouthBuild International, Global Development Incubator, Catholic Relief Services, and Accenture to build a global network of communities that are advancing place-based, cross-sector, and systemic approaches to tackling youth unemployment.
Previously, Jamie was President & CEO of Education For Employment (EFE) where he led the organization during a period of dramatic growth to provide job opportunities for tens of thousands of youth across 8 affiliated nonprofits in the Middle East & North Africa. Prior to EFE, Jamie was Portfolio Manager at the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, a foundation dedicated to scaling solutions to help vulnerable youth become successful adults. Early in his career, Jamie worked with Ashoka to support leading social entrepreneurs globally.
Jamie is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He was Chair and then Vice-Chair for the World Economic Forum Agenda Councils on Youth Unemployment and the Future of Work, respectively. Jamie was named a Schwab Foundation Global Social Entrepreneur in 2012 and is an alumnus of Teach for America and the Coro Fellows program. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
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Speaker
Chairman, Wamda
Fadi Ghandour is the Founder and Vice Chairman of Aramex, one of the leading global logistics and transportation companies. He is currently Executive Chairman of Wamda Capital, a new Venture Capital fund focusing on technology investments in the Arab World.
Fadi is also the Managing Partner of MENA Venture Investments, a seed capital investment company investing in early stage tech companies. He is Member of the Board of Abraaj Capital, Member of the Board of Endeavor Global, Member of the Advisory Council of the MIT Media Lab and Member of the Board of Trustees at the American University of Beirut (AUB).
Passionate about social entrepreneurship, Fadi is the Founder and Chairman of Ruwwad for Development, a private-sector led community empowerment initiative that helps disadvantaged communities across the region overcome marginalization through activism, civic engagement, education and financial inclusion with support from the Ruwwad Micro Venture Fund, an equity-based fund providing seed capital and support for microbusinesses and micro-entrepreneurs.
