WASHINGTON Ñ A United Nations report warns that a majority of older Arab young people want to leave their homelands in favor of the West.
The report by the United Nations Development Program said most Arab
young men and women plan to leave their countries and emigrate. They said
the favorite destinations are Europe and the United States, Middle East Newsline reported.
Only 13 percent of those wishing to emigrate sought to move to another
Arab country, the report, entitled Arab Human Development Report 2002, said.
The UN agency said this preference indicates how young Arabs regard their
societies.
The report cited lack of education, freedom and job opportunities as the
major reasons for emigration. The report said out of seven world regions,
the
Arab countries had the lowest level of freedom during the late 1990s.
"Remarkably, 51 percent of older youths expressed a desire to emigrate
to other countries, clearly indicating their dissatisfaction with current
conditions and future prospects in their home countries," the report said.
"Among those contemplating emigration, European countries were the favorite
destination [46 percent of respondents, 21 percent of whom chose the United
Kingdom alone, followed by the United States and Canada [36 percent], and
other Arab countries [13 percent]. The implicit judgement of how liveable
these young people consider Arab societies to be is evident."
The report supports growing concerns in Europe, particularly Britain,
Germany and France, that North Africa and the rest of the Arab world, will
continue be a leading source of immigrants. This concern has fueled the
Barcelona Process, or the European Union project to help develop North
Africa and the southern Mediterranean region.
The UN report said young men expressed a greater desire than women to
emigrate. The older the Arab youngster, the report said, the greater his
desire to emigrate.
"In general, the younger youths, particularly girls, seem to be somewhat
more attached to their countries and aware of broad social issues such as
participation and poverty," the report said. "The expressed priorities of
young people for education, together with the influence that education can
have on the thinking of young people provide a strong reason to focus, as
this report does, on education systems in Arab countries."
The report said Jordan rates highest among Arab countries in the level
of freedom of expression and government accountability. Kuwait is second on
the list. Qatar is regarded as the most politically stable country followed
by Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
