High Arab youth emigration desire amid record unemployment, but GCC youth optimistic

More than half of Arab youth in the Levantine and North African countries say they are actively trying to leave or are considering leaving their country for better opportunities, according to the findings of a survey.

While youth across the GCC praise their governments for what they believe offers them a bright future ahead, Arab youth in non-GCC countries want to move due to bleak economic outlooks and dire job prospects in their homeland.

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The lack of confidence in the opportunities in their own country was shown by respondents living in North Africa and the Levant who took part in the 2023 Arab Youth Survey.

The desire to emigrate was shown to be strongest among young men and women in the Levant (53 percent) followed by North Africa (48 percent), with the primary goal of finding a job.

On the other hand, just over a quarter (27 percent) of youth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states say they have considered emigration, with a majority saying they would ‘never leave their country.’

Most Arab youth say they would like to emigrate to Canada (34 percent), with the United States (30 percent) coming a close second, followed by Germany and the UK (both on 20 percent) and France at 17 percent.

These are some of the key findings under the theme ‘My Aspirations’ in the 15th annual Arab Youth Survey, a comprehensive study of the Arab world’s largest demographic and its over 200 million youth, conducted by communications consultancy ASDA’A BCW.

The survey was conducted face-to-face in 53 cities across 18 Arab states, with 3,600 Arab citizens aged 18 to 24 taking part.

The survey found that the desire to emigrate corresponds with the bleak economic outlook in many Arab nations.

Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of young Arabs in the Levant (Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestinian Territories, Syria and Yemen), and about two-thirds (62 percent) in North African countries surveyed (Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, South Sudan and Tunisia) said their national economy is going in the “wrong direction.”

In the GCC, however, youth remain extremely optimistic, with nearly nine in 10 (88 percent) saying their country’s economy is headed in the “right direction.”

With youth unemployment in the Middle East exceeding 25 percent – the highest and fastest-growing in the world, according to the International Labor Organization – getting a job is a priority for young Arabs.

Among those who said they are actively considering emigration, nearly half (49 percent) said the reason was to “look for a job.”

One in four (25 percent) GCC youth said they have considered emigration to “experience something new” compared with 13 percent in North Africa and 11 percent in Levant.

Despite their fears about their national economy, more than two-thirds (69 percent) of Arab youth believe their best days lie ahead of them, a five percent increase over 2022. Youth in the GCC are the most hopeful (85 percent), followed by those in North Africa (64 percent) and the Levant (60 percent).

Compared with four years ago, youth optimism in the region is at its peak, with 57 percent today saying they will have a better life than their parents, compared with 45 percent who said this in 2019. The positivity is highest among GCC youth (75 percent), followed by young Arabs in Levant (52 percent) and North Africa (50 percent).

Thinking about the next 10 years, Arab youth mostly want to start a career (18 percent) fol-lowed by finishing their education (17 percent). Pursuing a personal interest they are pas-sionate about ranked third (15 percent).

In another finding, more than eight in 10 (85 percent) said Arab countries must uphold universal values such as freedom, equality and respect for human rights – a sentiment shared by most young Arabs in all the three regions covered – 91 percent in North Africa, and 81 per-cent each in the GCC and Levant.

Sunil John, President, MENA, BCW and Founder of ASDA’A BCW, said: “The increasing number of Arab youth seeking greener pastures abroad reveals two of their important char-acteristics: One, their disappointment in the lack of opportunities at home – for a good edu-cation and a successful career, and two, their eagerness to shape their own destiny.”

“Youth emigration is a huge drain on the economy of the Arab world, which must be stopped if the region is to benefit from the youth dividend. The region is one of the youngest in the world with over 60 percent of its population, over 200 million, below the age of 30.”

John said, despite the bleak economies in North Africa and Levant, what was evident in the study’s findings is the youthful exuberance of being optimistic about the future.

“This is evident in most young Arabs being defiantly hopeful about their chances for a better life. These findings underline that Arab countries must focus on creating the right enabling environment for young people to thrive – the responsibility for this lies with both the government and the private sector.”

Religion, family values define Arabs’ personal identity

The Arab Youth Survey also found that the majority of the region’s youth believe religion and their family or tribe define their personal identity, with most saying that preserving their religious and cultural identity is more important to them than creating a more tolerant, liberal, and globalized society.

When asked what defines their personal identity, “my religion” and “my family/tribe” were each named by 27 percent of respondents overall, followed by “my nationality” (15 percent), “my language” (11 percent), “my Arabic heritage” (8 percent), “my gender” (7 percent) and “my political beliefs” (4 percent).

Religion was named as most important to personal identity by 30 percent of the respondents in Levant, 27 percent in North Africa, and 25 percent in the GCC states, while family/tribe was deemed most important by 37 percent of youth in North Africa, 21 percent in Levant and 20 percent in the GCC.

Over three-quarters (76 percent) of Arab youth said they are concerned about the loss of traditional values and culture, the highest percentage saying so in five years, while nearly two-thirds (65 percent) said preserving their religious and cultural identity is more important to them than creating a more tolerant, liberal, and globalized society.

This sentiment rises to nearly 74 percent in Levant, 72 percent in the GCC states and 68 percent in North Africa.

While 11 percent said language is most important to their identity, over half (54 percent) of the respondents said the Arabic language is less important to them than it is to their parents.

This trend is seen across the three regions surveyed, with 59 percent of GCC youth, 51 per-cent in North Africa and 52 percent in Levant all saying it is less important to them.

Reflecting the importance they place on their faith, a majority (73 percent) disagreed that religious values are holding the Arab world back, but nearly two-thirds (65 percent) said re-ligion plays too big a role in the Middle East.

Fewer Arab youth than in previous years feel the region needs to reform its religious institu-tions – down to 58 percent this year from 77 percent last year. This year, the face-to-face interviews with Arab youth were conducted from March 27 to April 12, coinciding with the holy month of Ramadan.

This sense of young Arabs embracing their religious identity is further reinforced by the finding that nearly two-thirds (62 percent) say the laws of their country should be based on Sharia standards and not civil or common law.

This sentiment is consistent across the three regions covered, with 68 percent in GCC, 53 percent in North Africa and 68 percent in Levant saying they prefer Sharia laws to govern their nations.

John added: “These findings reveal that Generation Z remain guided by faith, with their af-finity toward their religion stronger than ever and many being concerned about what they see as the loss of traditional values and culture. What is evident is that Arab youth increas-ingly view their personal identity through the lens of religion, family and nationality.”

“Another compelling finding is that the Arabic language is not as integral to their sense of tradition or their cultural values as one might have thought, with a majority of young people across the Arab world agreeing that the Arabic language is less important to them than it is to their parents,” John added. “The loss in importance given by Arab youth to the Arabic language is inevitably a symptom of the pervasive spread of the internet and social media. It is a cause for concern, most importantly, because of the Arabic language’s potentially diminished role as a unifying force among Arab nations.”

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