European Economic and Social Committee
REX/399
Young people in the
EuroMed region
Brussels, 25 September 2014
INFORMATION REPORT
of the
Section for External Relations
on the
Economic and social situation of young people in the Euro-Mediterranean region
_____________
Rapporteur: Pedro Narro
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Administrator: Georges Henri Carrard
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Rue Belliard/Belliardstraat 99 — 1040 Bruxelles/Brussel — BELGIQUE/BELGIË
Tel. +32 25469011 — Fax +32 25134893 — Internet: http://www.eesc.europa.eu
EN
On 22 January 2014, the European Economic and Social Committee, acting under Rule 31 of its Rules
of Procedure, decided to instruct its Section for External Relations to draw up an information report
on the
Economic and social situation of young people in the Euro-Mediterranean region.
The Section for External Relations, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the
subject, adopted its opinion on 18 September 2014
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1.
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Conclusions and recommendations
Employment policy
1.1
Rising unemployment around the Mediterranean and poor employment prospects are shared
problems which need to be addressed through closer regional cooperation, a long-term
strategy to harness the potential of the young people of the region, and a radical change of
culture and values in support of joint initiatives and the social economy. The EESC calls for a
reorientation of current economic policies and advocates increasing budget appropriations.
1.2
A spirit of enterprise among young people will be a key factor in the various Mediterranean
employment strategies. A robust private sector can only develop if young people receive
training geared to the real needs of the labour market. The number of business start-ups by
young people cannot be used as the sole indicator for these strategies. Governments should be
flexible and keep constant tabs on the progress of businesses set up by young people.
Measures for setting up new SMEs should be backed by institutional support to help them
remain active over the medium to long term.
Gender issues
1.3
Policies regarding young people in the Mediterranean must not overlook gender issues.
Legislative changes to promote the role of young women should consolidate and ensure the
human and civil rights of women.
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Young people and the rural exodus
1.4
In a context of growing food insecurity, rural areas offer untapped potential. The
Mediterranean countries can lessen the rural exodus by establishing new instruments designed
to give young people and women new opportunities both in traditional sectors (agri-food) and
in emerging sectors such as tourism, renewable energy and the environment. Mediterranean
countries' trade policy should be consistent with the strengths and weaknesses of their rural
areas.
New forms of political and social participation
1.5
Frustrated and disenchanted with traditional structures, young people are developing new
participation platforms and mechanisms, and the authorities should take account of these.
Steps should be taken to ensure that young people are able to play an effective part in the
decision-making process and generate a new climate of confidence and cooperation that
supports the political and economic transition in the Mediterranean countries.
1.6
"Traditional" civil society organisations should respond to and make use of the new ideas and
dynamism that young people can offer. Business organisations, trade unions, agricultural
organisations and consumer bodies should gradually establish a strategy encouraging an
active role for young people.
Euro-Mediterranean cooperation and solidarity
1.7
Cooperation and solidarity are vital for improving the socio-economic situation of young
people in the Mediterranean region. The specific bilateral and multilateral instruments
deployed respectively by the EU and the Union for the Mediterranean should be simplified,
better coordinated and given a higher profile among the youth organisations being targeted in
the southern Mediterranean countries. Ongoing programmes must be evaluated in order to
improve their reach and effectiveness. Greater synergy between donors and better
coordination can deliver significant medium to long-term outcomes.
1.8
By cooperating more closely and working in networks, the economic and social councils and
similar institutions of the Mediterranean countries have the experience and capacity to inform,
listen to and take on board proposals for improving the current initiatives designed for young
people in the Mediterranean.
Mobility
1.9
The Euro-Mediterranean network of economic and social councils and similar institutions
should become closely involved in fleshing out the new mobility partnerships proposed by the
EU in the Mediterranean area, and ensure that they do not remain mere political declarations.
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A joint consideration of mobility by civil society stakeholders in the Mediterranean can and
should stimulate major changes in national legislation.
1.10
Civil society must have confidence in the opportunities offered by the new mobility
initiatives, and must feed into these partnerships its proposals for facilitating visas and
avoiding a "brain drain" of the most highly skilled young people, so that progress can be
made on recognition of professional skills, readmission of workers, experience-swapping, and
specific training. Cooperation and coordination between national structures and the European
Training Foundation will be vital here.
2.
Introduction
Young people – a major force for change – currently face a series of challenges and
contradictions as a result of the world financial crisis, demographic change and a complex and
incomplete process of social and political reforms. Recent years have seen a large number of
analyses of the economic and social situation of young people in the Mediterranean, some of
which were coordinated by the region's economic and social councils.
2.1
The youth unemployment rate in the Middle East and North Africa is among the highest of all
world regions, averaging around 25% and reaching as high as 32%. The problem is most
pronounced for young women, who have the greatest difficulty entering the formal labour
force and retaining their jobs through difficult economic times.
2.2
Economic globalisation has not equipped young people with the tools they need to further
their economic and personal development. The situation of young people in the
Mediterranean has worsened considerably recently. However, their frustration and growing
poverty are counterbalanced by young people who are showing their solidarity and desire for
change by means of new forms of association, with calls for structural reforms to help
improve the socio-economic situation.
2.3
Young people are pressing for a place of their own in the decision-taking process, and are
dissociating themselves from traditional political and social structures in a quest for new ways
of channelling their energies and aspirations.
2.4
On both sides of the Mediterranean, the political agenda is full of new initiatives and
instruments for meeting young people's expectations. Hundreds of conferences and high-level
meetings discuss their situation but do not produce any significant progress, and young
people's frustration continues to grow, despite their priority status in the Mediterranean area.
2.5
The situation of young people in the Mediterranean can be addressed from different
perspectives. In general terms, any analysis of the problems and challenges facing young
people in the region calls for an in-depth consideration of the unemployment problem and of
the measures to adopt in order to create decent work.
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2.6
A number of EESC opinions have addressed the wider issue of young people and
employment in the EU. The EESC also worked in cooperation with other economic and social
councils in the Mediterranean on a joint report on young people and employment in the
Euro-Mediterranean region, which was presented at the 2013 summit1. The meeting
highlighted the need to tackle youth issues in a more permanent and coordinated manner, and
to continue analysing the social changes which face young people.
2.7
Rather than making a superficial analysis of youth unemployment in the Mediterranean,
which would serve no purpose, the present report seeks to provide a general outline of the
social changes facing young people, and identify new channels for participation, the specific
problems facing women, and the cooperation instruments which could facilitate
experience-swapping, mobility and cultural rapprochement.
3.
Snapshot of the situation of young people in the Euromed region
3.1
Across the Mediterranean, young people face widely varying and radically contradictory
social and political situations with the common denominator of rising unemployment,
frustration and widespread worsening poverty. Despite this, young people are showing great
dynamism and mobilising in ways for which traditional civil society organisations have been
unable to provide a conduit. Young people – increasingly well organised and coordinated –
are loudly demanding their say in decision-making processes and calling for genuine
participatory democracy at all levels.
3.2
The same problem is apparent on both the north and south sides of the Mediterranean, centred
on the continuing rise in youth unemployment. On both sides we are seeing the emergence of
new movements, united in their demands, playing an increasingly significant and active role
in society.
3.3
As regards north-south differences, stress should be laid on the contrast in demographic
trends, and on the radical political and social changes facing the countries of the southern
Mediterranean. The Arab Spring, which in many cases remains unfinished, revealed a vein of
dissent in the younger generation that has been channelled into new forms of association and
social networks. Governments should join forces to provide solutions for the "lost generation"
of young people living in conflict zones or refugee camps.
3.4
Young people in the EuroMed region are directly suffering the adverse effects of a
socio-economic system in which unemployment is rising sharply, innovation is marginalised,
productivity is poor, there is a shortage of skilled labour, inequalities between cities and rural
areas are widening, and huge social differences are becoming entrenched. This situation
1
Annual meeting of economic and social councils and similar institutions held in Barcelona on 11 and 12 November 2013.
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impacts not only on young people, but also on the political and economic strategies of their
governments.
4.
The major challenge: employment
4.1
A glance at the north and south sides of the Mediterranean reveals unemployment figures that
continue to rise2. On the north side, in 2013 youth unemployment in Spain reached an EU
record of 51.5%. In the southern Mediterranean, the figure ranges between 25% and 50%.
These figures indicate the problems faced by a generation of young people with no
employment prospects.
4.2
Despite the steady rise in unemployment, one must acknowledge the efforts and investment
made by most Mediterranean countries in education and training. However, increased public
spending in this field has not led to better job opportunities for young people. Literacy and
school-attendance rates at the various levels have improved, but the results on the labour
market are paradoxical.
4.3
In the southern Mediterranean, more training does not bring with it more opportunities to find
a job. The higher unemployment rate among young graduates casts serious doubts on the
quality of the system and its adaptation to the needs of the private sector. However, on the
north side of the Mediterranean it is young people without qualifications who face the highest
unemployment rates3.
4.4
The Mediterranean countries have traditionally tended to base their employment policy on
developing public employment. This strategy has led young people to focus their training and
aspirations on getting a job in the public sector. Social or cultural studies departments have
swelled, while young people have shown little interest in technical studies4. In contrast to
other parts of the world, public-sector pay in the southern Mediterranean countries is higher
than that on offer in the private sector. The many initiatives undertaken to create decent jobs
in the private sector have so far failed to deliver the anticipated results5.
4.5
Developing a spirit of enterprise in young people and support for small and medium-sized
enterprises is a key priority for the authorities on both sides of the Mediterranean. Civil
society organisations must be involved in the framing of this new strategy, and there must be
an ongoing assessment of the results achieved in the medium to long term. The number of
2
3
4
5
The only country bucking the trend is Israel.
ILO report on Global Employment Trends for Youth 2012.
In Morocco, 80% of university students are following social studies or humanities courses. Technical studies are still failing to
attract young Moroccans.
At the request of the Cyprus presidency of the EU, the EESC adopted an opinion on a macro-regional strategy in the
Mediterranean (ECO/332) on 12 December 2012. This opinion further explores the pillars on which to base a new economic and
employment strategy in the Euro-Mediterranean region.
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businesses set up by young people cannot be a useful indicator if after three years most of
these start-ups are heading for failure6.
4.6
Frustration and loss of motivation bring with them a lack of hope of finding a job. In the
northern and southern Mediterranean a growing number of young people are not in education,
employment or training, nor are they seeking work7. The limited official figures available
show that in Spain almost 900 000 young people find themselves in this difficult situation,
which brings with it a series of collateral effects that feed into a new social context.
4.7
The term "NEETs" covers two distinct situations: on the one hand, disillusioned young men
with work experience and a good education (Spain or Portugal), and on the other hand a
mainly female group without previous experience and with few qualifications who become
disheartened (typically the case in Greece). In the European Union, 7 million young people
are outside the education system and the labour market. The proportion of NEETs in the
southern Mediterranean has continued to rise to the point where it constitutes a third of young
people8.
4.8
Ninety percent of the population of the southern Mediterranean lives in just 10% of the total
area. Young people are leaving rural areas to seek a new life and new job opportunities in
increasingly overcrowded towns and cities. Most investment is in the cities, where youth
unemployment and frustration grow in parallel. The authorities must eschew policies that
focus too much on cities and neglect the huge potential of rural areas, where young people
and women could find personal and professional fulfilment. The various regional strategies
should be adapted so that specific programmes can be applied in disadvantaged areas.
5.
The gender dimension
5.1
Women in Mediterranean countries experience double discrimination (if also young) and even
triple discrimination if in a situation of economic poverty. They face a set of structural and
cultural hurdles that make it difficult for them to find jobs (unemployment rates for young
women are higher than those for young men) and to get an education, especially in rural
and/or peripheral areas. The latter situation results in higher illiteracy rates.
5.2
In the southern Mediterranean, more training means higher female unemployment. The only
jobs available to female graduates tend to be in the public sector, given the lack of incentives
to find a job in the private sector. There are very few programmes for well-qualified young
women, and their higher level of training goes unrewarded. In rural areas, the only work open
to young women is often in the informal economy and their right to own property is not fully
6
7
8
Policy Brief on Youth Entrepreneurship, carried out by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Young people not in employment, education or training, report by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and
Working Conditions.
Survey, Martin and Bardack, 2012.
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recognised. EESC reports on the issue point out that this situation makes it difficult for
women to undertake business initiatives9.
5.3
Despite a gradual rise in the public participation and representation of women, there is still a
glass ceiling when it comes to accessing decision-making positions. Difficulties in reconciling
work and private life (which often also involves being a carer) mean that many women face
exclusion from (or restricted access to) the labour market and education.
5.4
Young women are becoming more aware of the value and importance of their participation in
society. Young women played a highly active part in launching the popular protests known as
the Arab Spring, reacting against a patriarchal regime and rising up against a conservative
system that gave women a subservient role in society. The potential offered by young women
represents a huge opportunity for the southern Mediterranean countries. The most recent
EuroMed ministerial conferences held in Paris and Barcelona enshrined the concept of
"responsible leadership" and see young women as an important vehicle for socio-economic
change in the region.
5.5
Consideration should be given to specific instruments geared to the particular circumstances
of young women, and measures should be devised to meet their needs. This means measures
to reduce female illiteracy; promote and facilitate the access of girls and young women to
education, especially in the most isolated areas; improve vocational training, in line with
labour market needs; foster and support innovative entrepreneurial projects by women,
seeking new market niches; ensure access to property rights; eliminate labour market and
pay-related inequalities; promote initiatives that make it easier to reconcile work and private
life, and support policies that ensure female representation and leadership in decision-making.
But first and foremost, it is important for young women to grasp the value and importance of
their participation in society.
5.6
As recommended in the Third Ministerial Conference – Strengthening the role of Women in
the Euromed Region, Paris, 12 September 2013, the UfM has labelled four projects, among
others, which deal directly with women. Falling within the scope of the Social and Civil
Affairs Division, these are:
Young Women as Job Creators, Phase I and Phase II, promoted by AFAEMME10,
Skills for Success: Employability Skills for Women, promoted by AMIDEAST11,
9
10
11
EESC report on the economic and social situation of women in the Euromed region.
http://ufmsecretariat.org/young-women-as-job-creators-project-to-begin-its-second-implementation-phase.
http://ufmsecretariat.org/skills-for-success-employability-skills-for-women-implementation-begins-in-jordan-and-morocco/.
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Developing Women Empowerment, promoted by the Foundation of the Women of the
Euro-Mediterranean12,
Forming Responsible Citizens, promoted by Ideaborn13.
6.
Participation, associations and leadership
6.1
Voluntary participation by young people in associations and organisations is a key instrument
for improving social cohesion in the Mediterranean region. Active involvement in civic and
social organisations from a young age is beneficial for the countries concerned and prepares
young people for playing a more significant role in a changing political and social context.
Civic involvement is a driver of political change, as it develops public spirit and offers new
and innovative solutions to the most traditional problems.
6.2
Promoting associations and their values brings added value to political structures.
Administrations should therefore encourage the setting-up of these organisations, cut red tape
and guarantee their independence from the political authorities. The process of change
triggered by the Arab Spring spawned a host of new organisations and structures, but their
limited reach and tight governmental control make it difficult for the smaller independent
organisations to succeed.
6.3
The type of groupings that young people belong to has changed dramatically in recent years.
Traditional organisations have given way to new collective initiatives whose distinguishing
features are their capacity to mobilise people and their critical, protest-oriented nature.
However, in many countries there is a lack of young leaders who could take on this role in the
medium to long term and not merely on an ad hoc basis. The young leaders who emerged
from the Arab Spring were soon ostracised and their dynamism and energy left unharnessed.
6.4
The role of social networks and new technologies. Youth activism in social networks and
new technologies proved crucial for channelling the social discontent which fanned the winds
of change in the southern Mediterranean. The need for change was made manifest through
certain social networks which articulated a number of demands that had previously remained
unspoken.
6.5
The key question is what role social networks can play in the new situation in the southern
Mediterranean. These new instruments should be used to provide transparency, establish
networks and exchange experience. More efforts are also needed to disseminate and publicise
the various projects and activities in which young people play a significant role: this is
essential in order to encourage them to get involved.
12
13
http://ufmsecretariat.org/developing-women-empowerment/.
http://ufmsecretariat.org/forming-responsible-citizens-promoting-citizenship-education-to-prevent-school-violence-particularlyagainst-girls-and-women/.
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6.6
Young people in the decision-making process. People in general, and the young in
particular, feel excluded from social dialogue and remote from the political parties on both
sides of the Mediterranean. The underlying reasons vary considerably, depending on the
national situation. Moves to give them a role in the new set-up in Egypt and Tunisia
ultimately proved ineffective, and the measures taken by Mediterranean governments to allow
civil society to play its proper role in the decision-making procedure have been extremely
diffident. We need to analyse what new participation mechanisms should be put in place, and
how to adapt traditional mechanisms to a situation in which young people demand a bigger
role.
6.7
The political context around the Mediterranean varies greatly, and specific situations such as
those of Spain or Tunisia cannot be extrapolated to all Mediterranean countries. Nonetheless,
one can understand a common tendency on the part of young people to demand new forums
for participation and a new way of conducting politics. Young people in the Mediterranean
are mistrustful of traditional politics and structures; institutions do not impress them, and they
make no secret of their disgust at corruption. Young people are caught between submission to
the established order and civic rebellion. In these circumstances and given the passivity of the
political class, the most radical and extremist movements feed on this growing frustration.
7.
Cooperation instruments in the Mediterranean
7.1
Euro-Mediterranean cooperation on issues regarding young people is of great strategic value
and should be stepped up. The EU, the Union for the Mediterranean, and the southern
Mediterranean countries must prioritise and support the establishment of specific instruments
to improve cooperation in the fields of employment, mobility and cultural exchange14.
7.2
The EU and Mediterranean networks have set up a number of programmes designed for
young people in the northern and southern Mediterranean. Some have proved ineffective (the
Euro-Mediterranean University), while others have produced positive results (Erasmus
Mundus). Organised civil society must become more involved in the framing and
implementation of these initiatives in order to ensure that they meet the demands and needs of
the region's young people. Some of them, such as the Euro-Mediterranean University, need
revitalising and must not be allowed to become inactive or overly bureaucratic.
7.3
Over the last ten years, the EU has made considerable efforts to develop a framework of
measures to help young people in the southern Mediterranean countries. Broadly speaking,
the EU has centred its support strategy on three fields:
14
The EESC set out its position on Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in its opinion Towards an EU macroregional strategy in the
Mediterranean. OJ C 170/1, 5.6.2014.
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7.3.1
Higher education
The Erasmus Mundus and Tempus programmes have played an essential role here, and will
continue in the context of the new Erasmus+ programme. This new programme is founded on
three basic pillars: mobility, cooperation for innovation and the exchange of new practices.
The EU should make an additional effort to include more young people from the southern
Mediterranean in the relevant schemes15 and improve their access to information about EU
programmes in the region.
The closer dialogue with the southern Mediterranean countries on higher education reflects
the spirit of the neighbourhood policy adopted in May 2012. As a result, EU programmes
such as Jean Monnet and Marie Curie should be more open to young people in the southern
Mediterranean.
7.3.2
Education and further training
The European Training Foundation has steered and coordinated some of the EU's initiatives
on education and further training for young people. Bilateral and regional programmes, in line
with the priorities of the European Neighbourhood Policy, have sought to help young people
improve their employability by strengthening education and further training. The Foundation
is developing instruments to reform training diplomas and their recognition, by means of
national and regional dialogue16.
7.3.3
Youth programmes
Youth programmes have helped to galvanise young people in the Mediterranean; they have
sought to do away with stereotypes and encourage cultural dialogue and mutual
understanding as the basis for a new society. Two positive instances of European involvement
are provided by the Youth in Action (2007-2013) and Euro-Mediterranean Youth IV
(2010-2016) programmes.
7.4
15
16
The EESC's recent visits to Jordan, Tunisia and Algeria revealed that youth organisations are
unaware of the possibilities offered by this new cooperation framework. The EU could gain a
higher profile and get its message across more effectively in the southern Mediterranean
countries by working more closely with organised civil society. The EU should avail itself of
bodies such as the EESC to improve communication, active participation and
experience-swapping between socio-economic players in the Mediterranean.
During the 2007-2012 period, 6 600 young people from the southern Mediterranean benefited from Erasmus Mundus and
Tempus. Since 2007, the EU has devoted EUR 140 million to cooperation programmes for Mediterranean universities and a total
of EUR 150 million to scholarships. To access this information: www.eacea.ec.europa.eu.
Regional initiatives implemented by the ETF in this field include: Young Mediterranean Leaders, the regional dimension of
qualifications, governance for employment, support for regional dialogue on employment-related matters and the development of
SMEs.
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7.5
Alongside the need for more information and transparency, there is also the problem of the
mass of red tape that participants in these schemes have to negotiate. Cooperation means
providing support and coordination as part of an inclusive, long-term strategy. The EU
delegations in the southern Mediterranean countries need to be very active in their relations
with national civil society.
7.6
Social stakeholders should be involved in helping to make these programmes more efficient
and to coordinate the plethora of instruments used to pursue the same objective. Coordination
and the pursuit of synergies among all the participating parties will prevent duplication of
efforts in a field in which there is a widely differing range of instruments and initiatives.
Some worthwhile initiatives have been undertaken by the Mediterranean economic and social
councils under the coordination of the Spanish ESC. The Tresmed project, supported by the
European Neighbourhood Policy, sought to improve dialogue with civil society and achieved
significant success with regard to training for young people and social dialogue. The EU
should keep up these initiatives, strengthening them and maximising the involvement of the
various social stakeholders.
The EU and the southern Mediterranean countries have focused their priorities on control of
unlawful migration and border controls. The experience of recent years demonstrates the
utility of boosting cooperation on a much wider scale as regards economic migration and
mutual recognition of skills. The EU should carry out a detailed study on migration linked to
youth unemployment.
7.7
The Euro-Mediterranean network of economic and social councils can ascertain what type of
measures could be developed in the context of new mobility partnerships, such as those
concluded with Morocco and Tunisia, to encourage exchanges, training and cultural
rapprochement between the northern and southern Mediterranean, but also between southern
Mediterranean countries.
Brussels, 18 September 2014
The President
of the
Section for External Relations
José María Zufiaur Narvaiza
_____________
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