Untapped treasure
While often assumed able to fend for themselves, young professionals are a national resource that should be nurtured and utilised, writes Ehaab Abdou
Youth in general and young professionals in particular are a great asset to any society or country's development. In Egypt, the prevalent view of youth is as a liability. This is beginning to change. An increasing number of sectors of society are starting to view youth as an asset of vast potential, able to contribute positively to community development. In Egypt and the region, many youth-led initiatives as well as youth-targeting initiatives, have contributed to the emergence of a vibrant civil society.
Many recent trends, opportunities and challenges are shaping this youth civil society sector . This article provides some recommendations for possible institutional and policy interventions to create the more favourable environment needed to engage the vastly underutilised body of young Egyptian professionals. Also discussed are mechanisms necessary to encouraging young professionals to be more engaged in social development and the public arena.
Youth-led civil society in Egypt has witnessed a revival in the past 10 years or more. Youth-led NGOs and student-led clubs and associations are only a small indication of changes in youth organisation. Media tools used by youth, and for youth, whether in magazines or more recently in electronic format, including "blogspots", are testimonies to this revival. Young people have the ability and interest to "participate". This phenomenon is promising for several reasons, but most importantly because youth- targeting programmes led by youth are usually more understanding of their peers' needs and priorities. Examples of youth-led, youth-targeting NGOs functioning in Egypt include the Youth Association for Population and Development (established after the UN International Conference for Population and Development in Cairo) and student clubs like Resala (Message), initiated in the Faculty of Engineering at Cairo University, and Alashanek Ya Balady (For you My country), initiated at the American University in Cairo. Other student clubs and associations function as local chapters of international organisations, like AIESEC (International Association for Students in Economics and Management) or SIFE (Society for Free Enterprise). Some are more home grown, like Tshange in the Faculty of Economics and Political Science and the Patient Doctor New Era (PDNE) in the Faculty of Medicine, both at Cairo University.
Youth-led civil society is confronted with both opportunities and challenges. Increased interest in youth and civil society is reflected in the increase in sources of funding available for development initiatives from the corporate sector. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes, corporate foundations and philanthropic family foundations, are some of the sources of support. Indeed, there is a changing trend in funding away from traditional short-term relief and charity to the support of development and empowerment projects. Other opportunities derive from the rising interest in youth issues. Large projects such as the Arab League's programme on the empowerment of youth, or the Brookings Institution's Wolfensohn Centre research programme on Middle East youth, are aimed at improving society's understanding of youth through research. National governments are also giving priority to youth, establishing entities like the Egyptian National Youth Council. And in September 2007, the Suzanne Mubarak International Women for Peace organisation hosted the International Youth Forum in Sharm El Sheikh. On a regional level, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina holds an annual discussion forum with Arab youth. Greater opportunities can also be envisaged under the relatively new NGO Law 184 (2002), which has, in principle, made establishing an NGO much easier to do.
With the reality that not all NGOs survive and grow, the challenges begin. There is a recognised need for improved relations between all NGOs and government, in particular the Ministry of Social Solidarity. More trust is needed, along with understanding of the nature of NGOs, entailing obligations on both sides of this necessary partnership. Among important challenges is a lack of core funding for institution building beyond programmatic support. One of the few, if not the only, core donors is the EFG-Hermes Foundation, which supports the capacity building and sustainability efforts of youth-led NGOs through its collaboration with the Federation of Egyptian Youth NGOs.
A lack of well-qualified human resources, whether on a voluntary or full-time professional basis, with the right skill-set and understanding of the voluntary sector, is also a major challenge, just like in other sectors in society. However, a positive trend is emerging to increase the number of programmes and organisations dedicated to youth development, which should in turn bread experience. Several programmes have emerged to target and support youth to be active and to play a leading role in their communities. There has also been an increase in the number of youth leadership development programmes, whether government-led and organised by the National Youth Council, or by UNICEF. The Ford Foundation's programmes, managed and organised by the International Institute for Education and the Dreamers of Tomorrow youth-led NGO, provide other exciting opportunities. Resources and funds available for youth leadership and youth programming have also increased. The Amman-based regional funds dedicated to youth development, including Naseej (Weave) and Safar (Travel), funded by the Ford Foundation and Siraj (Night Light), funded the US Agency for International Development, are two examples. In addition there is the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ)-initiated, and Nahdet El Mahrousa incubated, Namaa (Sustainable Devlopment) initiative. Several scholarship programmes by many local foundations like that of Sawiris or Citadel, and other international entities or in the corporate sector, have also appeared recently.
Most of these opportunities focus on underprivileged youth, aiming to provide them with necessary skills or educational opportunities and resources. Young professionals, however, are mostly ignored on the belief that they will take care of themselves. This overlooked segment of youth, if effectively mobilised, could have a powerful ripple effect across all sectors of the country's development. Young professionals, although a great asset, are under-utilised. Given their skills, with initial financial encouragement and, most importantly, connections and social support, they represent an enormous opportunity and should be regarded as an untapped treasure. In business terms, they provide the highest return on investment. Whether based inside or outside Egypt, they contribute to Egypt's development. Individually, through their work and careers in government, the corporate sector, academia and many others fields, they are building Egypt.
A big void remains, however, which is the public arena. Although some youth are already "participating" in Egyptian society through volunteering or being board members of NGOs, or are even active politically, the majority is apolitical and not engaged actively in the civic domain. There are many ways this could change. Organisations exist aiming at mobilising and engaging young professionals in numerous ways. Regionally, organisations include the Young Arab Leaders in Dubai. Closer to home, the Egyptian Junior Business Association focuses on young professionals with a corporate or business background. Another home grown entity is Nahdet El Mahrousa (Egypt's Rennaissance), an NGO which is open to young professionals from diverse backgrounds, aiming to empower them and sustain their innovative development projects. These organisations are a good start. However, they need to expand their outreach and strategically scale-up to mobilise more young professionals.
For young professionals to play the role required of them, efforts are needed on several levels. First, young professionals have to be proactive and reach out to civil society organisations and the public arena at large. Individuals can contribute to strengthening youth-based civil society through the transfer of personal knowledge and providing support. There is a need to develop successful models and support local NGOs in their efforts to learn from international best practice. Second, the corporate sector needs to support its employees undertaking development work. As some multinational corporations do already, there is a need to promote corporate volunteerism and encourage companies to match employee donations. Third, the government has a big role to play. Better incentives are needed to help start community foundations where small donors can pool their resources. This has proven successful in the US. Fourth, the government in collaboration with civil society can design special national programmes targeting Egyptian expatriates. This is particularly important for communities where large numbers of young Egyptian professionals are based, such as Dubai, the US, the UK and Canada. Fifth, NGOs also need to be creative in best utilising the time of this resourceful, dedicated, able and yet busy segment of society.
International NGOs and donor agencies need to recognise this opportunity. They need to streamline and build significant components into their programming that engage young professionals in all the above areas. This can include mentoring for others, sharing knowledge and expertise, volunteering, providing training and capacity building. These organisations also need to support young professionals in transferring their skills and knowledge through designing mentoring programmes for younger generations.
Universities also play a crucial role. By connecting with their young professional alumni, universities need to help engage them and provide them with incentives to be active in strengthening student culture and student bodies. Universities, research centres and think tanks need also to give more space to young professionals by reaching out to them. Space is needed for their opinions, perspectives, views and innovative solutions to national development issues and dilemmas. ( Al-Ahram Weekly's Beyond supplement -- and especially this issue -- is a great potential vehicle or tool for this).
Finally, engaging this vital part of the population in our collective future is a national duty. Media, academe, donors, large NGOs and government all need to work together on educating young professionals about available opportunities and their role in Egypt's history, as well as beyond in other countries, in the region and internationally. While the challenges are great, the opportunities are greater yet for mobilising this vital sector and building a brighter future for our youth and for Egypt.
Ehaab Abdou is Ashoka fellow, managing director of Nahdet El Mahrousa, and chairperson of the Federation of Egyptian Youth NGOs. In 1999, he helped establish Fathet Kheir, a leading Egyptian micro-finance NGO
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2008/893/sc04.htm