Dubai: Middle East youth are more concerned by the rising cost of living, followed by a shortage of affordable housing and unemployment, an Arab youth survey revealed on Sunday.
The survey was conducted by Asda'a Burson-Marsteller, which interviewed 2,000 young Arabs in nine countries, with 300 of these from the UAE.
Sunil John, chief executive officer of Asda'a, said the sample group was small but representative of Arab youth, who make up 60 per cent of the region's 300 million Arab population.
Karen Hughes, global vice-chairman of Burson-Marsteller, said the rising cost of living was "overwhelmingly" the youth's biggest concern.
"[Yet] there is still a striking sense of optimism [among] Arab youth, with two-thirds of them saying they believe their countries... are headed in the right direction," she added.
John said the survey aims to provide corporations, policymakers, government bodies and the public a window into the minds, habits and feelings of the region's largest demographic group.
Jobs shortage
"It's well documented that one of the biggest problems this region has is the shortage of jobs and how to create them," John said.
"It is very well documented that 100 million jobs are needed for an increasingly growing young population. So optimism is good to record, but what to do with it is a matter of concern."
The survey also showed that 93 per cent of the participants ranked living in a democratic country as their single most important priority out of a list of 16.
The fourth main concern was a lack of political voting rights.
Hughes said 93 per cent of those surveyed said living in a democratic country was either very important or "somewhat" important.
This was followed by good infrastructure, good access to universities, earning fair wages and living in a safe neighbourhood.
Findings: Confident but in debt
- Arab youth are confident about the prospects for economic recovery in 2010
- Nearly four out of five claim to own a mobile phone
- Young Arabs increasingly live online, but nearly half read a newspaper every day
- Two thirds of Arab youth spend their free time in front of the TV
- More than a quarter of Arab youth are in debt
- Arab youth are increasingly looking to the East in response to the shifting global economy
- Youth in the Middle East are evenly split on their preferences to work in the government or private sector
Numbers
Top five concerns among Arab youth:
- 67 per cent: Rising cost of living
- 45 per cent: Shortage of affordable housing
- 43 per cent: Unemployment
- 41 per cent: The lack of political voting rights
- 39 per cent: The quality of education in schools
Are you concerned about the cost of living? Which expenses take up most of your budget?
