Few options for educated youth under occupation

Ma'an-IRIN- The lack of job opportunities for young people in the occupied Palestinian territories has created an unemployment crisis that could further destabilize the Arab region, experts warn.

"The largest generation, which was born in the 1980s, has reached working age... young adults are now perceived as the most problematic age group," notes sociologist and demographer Philippe Fargues, also director of the Migration Policy Centre at the European University Institute in Florence.

"Their growth has outpaced the resources available to them, from employment that provides income and status, to freedom, participation, and agency," added Fargues, who in a recent paper suggested that the "youth bulge" will reshape the Arab world.

Frustrated Arab youth, he argues, have been left with two options: stay in their countries and protest, or leave to seek work and opportunity abroad. The number of people in the 15-29 age range is the largest the Arab world has seen. Read more