Middle East – A growing gap between education and market demand

Educational challenges across the Middle East vary from country to country, but one thing remains the same – the growing gap between education and market demand. 

The urgent need for educators to produce graduates who possess skills sought after by employers took centre stage on Monday at a panel discussion during the second day of the Dubai Global Education and Skills Forum.

“Forty million young people [in the Middle East and North Africa] are going to enter the labour market in the coming 10 years, at the same time they are not qualified in terms of skills and knowledge to be productive, creating basically a huge problem for any economy,” said Dr Hamad Al Sheikh, vice minister of education for boys affairs in Saudi Arabia .

“There is a gap in terms of skills and knowledge between what the institution is producing and between what the demand factories and companies are asking for.”

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Growing gap between education and market demand still a major concern, UAE forum told | The National.

Related articles

• Gulf Arabs states / One-Million Jobs Gap IMF says
• Two-Thirds of Young Arab Women Remain Out of Workforce According to a Gallup Survey
• Gulf hit by high youth unemployment: Saudi Arabia unemployment among the 15-19 age group is 27.3%
• After the Arab Spring / Youth unemployment still the most urgent challenge
• Arab World / Job seeker numbers soar to 95 million by 2030 from the current 55 million
• Unemployment in the Arab World
• Arab countries should embrace knowledge economy says the World Bank
• Arab region / Youth unemployment highest in the world
• Arab Youth / Lack of soft skills robs of jobs experts say