Dubai: Unemployment and a failing education system contributed to the Arab Spring uprisings and pose a “major threat” to stability, the World Bank president warned during the World Government Summit in Dubai on Monday.
Speaking during his main address, Jim Yong Kim said: “The imperative to act is clear. High unemployment rates among graduates is a profound waste of time and potential, and it could pose a major threat to stability. We’ve seen this with the Arab Spring, where highly educated people, not able to earn as much as they could, were more likely to join protests. We’ve also seen this with groups like Daesh, where well-educated and under-employed people are more likely to be recruited.”
He added: “To help meet these challenges, I’m delighted to announce today [Monday] a platform for education, which will be convened annually here at the World Government Summit. The platform will serve as a space to share global experiences, launch new initiatives and spark high-level debates and exchange among leaders, experts and policymakers. The platform will harness our efforts to find scalable solutions to challenges.”
Also speaking about the need for inclusive education was Irina Bokova, director-general of Unesco, during her keynote address. “I believe we need a new focus on empowerment and capacities, building resilient societies, able to adapt to the unexpected, plan ahead and recover from crisis,” she said.
“This is why the 2030 Agenda is such a shift, because it is founded on education, on skills, to empower every man and women, especially girls.”