Posted By Ashraf Zeitoon Wednesday, March 17, 2010 - 9:20 AM Share
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
(This is the first article of a series on
change in the Arab world)
There
seems to be a consensus among foreign policy commentators and experts following
the region that the Middle East is no place for optimists. However, a recent
survey of Arab youth finds that the region's largest demographic segment (where
200 million Arabs are under 25 years of age) are in fact optimistic about the future.
Last week, ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller, the regional public relations
firm based in Dubai,
announced the findings of the Arab Youth Survey 2010.
The survey, which has been described as the "largest ever study of its kind of
the region's largest demographic", included 2,000 face-to-face interviews with
Arab nationals and Arab expatriates between the ages of 18-24 in the six Gulf
Cooperation Council nations, as well as in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan. The study
asked respondents a wide range of questions covering topics such as politics
and economics, globalization and religion, among many others.
The survey's findings provide some
distinctive glimpses into the thinking of the youth of the region, their
aspirations and their concerns. One of the key findings, which runs contrary to
the misconceptions about the region's youth, is the high level of optimism
among them, where two-thirds surveyed believed that their countries are moving
in the right direction. That trend was most evident in GCC countries,
especially Saudi Arabia,
where 98 percent of those surveyed believe that things in their country are
moving in the right direction given the development over the last five
years. The overall high level of optimism among Arab youth is even more
surprising considering that "the rising cost
of living, shortage of affordable housing, and unemployment are the top three
worries for Arab youth." Admittedly, these high levels were not
unanimous. In Egypt
and Lebanon,
for example, only 26 percent and 22 percent respectively of those surveyed
believe that their country is going in the right direction. Yet this lack of
optimism in the country's direction could be attributed to specific political
realities: the stalled pace of reform in the case of Egypt, and the year's events that crippled
political life in Lebanon
before and after the parliamentary elections in June 2009.
Another surprising finding was that Arab
youth prioritize living in a democratic country over everything else. 99
percent of those interviewed in the survey in Kuwait revealed that living in a
democracy was either "very important" or "somewhat important", while Egypt
followed with the second highest at 98 percent and the UAE was third at 96
percent.
The findings provided another remarkable
result where seven out of ten interviewed stated that the notion of global
citizenship was "very" or "somewhat" important to them. This belief by a
majority of the Arab youth surveyed, that they are part of the global system as
fully engaged global citizens, contradicts "the
common Western misperception of Arab youth as conservative and
inward-looking". It further goes a long way to debunking the
stereotype, held in decision-making circles in Washington and other European capitals, that
sees Arab youth as extremists or only concerned with their own countries.
The survey's findings in other areas were
less surprising and confirmed existing conceptions. For instance, it showed
that religion is highly important to Arab youth, as around two-thirds of those
interviewed said that religion defines them as a person, and another 62 percent
choose religion as an influence on them and their outlook on life.
Another expected finding of the survey was
that Arab youth generally admire political, religious and business leaders.
When asked who they looked up to, 31 percent of those interviewed named
religious leaders and 30 percent cited government leaders. This was in direct
contrast to the answers by their peers in Western countries who cited 9 percent
for religious leaders and just 5 percent for government leaders.
Despite
the fact that survey findings could be interpreted in many ways along many
different trend lines, the overall results still come as a breath of fresh air
and provide valuable insight to policymakers in the region and in Washington in
particular. The poll is indicative that the youth of the region will be
the main driver for change in the future. A great majority of them are
coming out and daring to dream of a better future for what Samir Kassir has called "the most wretched people in the
world today."
Ashraf Zeitoon is a Public Affairs expert
currently residing in Dubai.
He served previously in senior positions in the Government of Jordan and Government of Dubai.
i think this survey is interesting because it reflects the work of scholars (including the late and great Edward Said) who took issue with terms that implied a static environment in the Middle East. Not only is their a wide range of opinions and beliefs, but that these ideals are constantly being negotiated.
the gulf is very different from the levant. yet, to say 'the gulf' is dangerous in that it implies one belief system, one frame of mind, when diversity is abundant.
i wish i could see the source for the quote "the common Western misperception of Arab youth as conservative and inward-looking."
But as mentioned here, i think this is a common perception advocated by the media, because it fits neatly into media's anti-Arab, anti-Islam narrative. The global citizen bit doesn't surprise me at all. hang out with any group of young people (across most socio-economic levels as well) in Arab countries and you'll immediately see the awareness of global trends in their language, beliefs, and feelings.
Most importantly, this survey appears to complicate and make dynamic the idea of the "middle east." for lazy pundits and journalists, its all too easy to paint the middle east with a single stroke of brush.
Re the quote""the common Western misperception of Arab youth as conservative and inward-looking.", I will dig up my notes and share with you a number of sources - articles & analysis - where the authors, as usual, stereotyped the youth of the region...
This survey is more a representation of Gulf Arabs than "Arabs" or the "Middle East." It grossly underweights Egypt, by far the biggest Arab country, does not include very highly populated Syria and Yemen, and massively overweights the tiny Gulf countries. I mean, tiny UAE with something like 5m people is more represented than Egypt's 80m.
A good survey perhaps, but not representative of Arabs as a whole.
Your comments are spot on. I have been following surveys of the region over the past years and this is by far, one of the best surveys I have come across despite the many flaws in it...
I am sure that with time, we will bet getting better surveys with more comprehensive and accurate sampling...
Not representative of Arabs as a whole?
Yeah surely, but perhaps it's mainly cause we see them as a whole in the West, but they surely aren't.
Does France share values with Poland? Yeah, are they the same people, hell no!!
Example: in France, many french from the north-west region of Bretagne ("bretons") want their autonomy (they have their own culture, own language totally different from french), many "basques" the same, they do not consider themselves like French, but officially they are...
It's exactly the same in Spain with Catalan and Castillano, different languages (did you know that there are loads of spanish, living in Cataluna, that do not understand the official spanish language?)
So how can we have a consensus for Arabs in all the ME? Arabs from Egypt are very different from Syrians, etc.
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