World Bank Conference on Digital technologies at the service of economic development in the Mediterranean, Marseille, France

With a large youth representation and youth unemployment ratio, the MENA Region faces a potential crisis unless new sources of growth in promising economic sectors such as ICT are identified and exploited. In many MENA countries, the education sector should be reformed to include specific qualifications and specialisations in the ICT sector. The private sector can play a larger role in helping governments and academia focus investments on high-priority and high demand skills, thus young students are ready for employment the moment they graduate. A number of success stories exist in the region: creation of start-ups incubators, mentoring entrepreneurs, partnerships with private sect, matching job applications, curriculum reform.