D. Suhair bint Sanad Al -Muhannadi
The International Youth Day, which falls on August 12, is an important occasion for reflection on the reality of future generations, which represents the pillar of building civilizations and formulating tomorrow’s features, talking about young people exceeds mere numbers and statistics, to become a deep exploration of the capabilities of human energies that can push societies towards progress, despite the great challenges facing the world today, United Nations reports indicate that there are more than 1.2 billion young people between 15 and 24 In general, they constitute about 16% of the world’s population, most of them live in developing countries that face challenges such as high unemployment rates that reach 14% globally among young people, which is more than three times the unemployment rate among adults, and the International Labor Organization report shows that about 267 million young people do not work and do not study or receive training, which reflects a development gap that hinders sustainable development.
In light of these challenges, the Kingdom of Bahrain emerges as an advanced national model that focuses on empowering young people as a driving force for development, according to the report of the Ministry of Youth and Sports Affairs for the year 2024, the percentage of Bahraini youth participation in the labor market exceeded 60%, superior to the regional average, which is about 53%, and statistics of the Gulf Center for Innovation indicate that 28% of the startups in Bahrain are owned by youth, compared to 15% on the average Al -Khaleeji, which reflects the success of the national strategy in supporting entrepreneurship and innovation among young people, and it is also remarkable that the percentage of young women working to 47%, which reflects a comprehensive vision that enables all groups.
These achievements did not come by chance, but rather the product of an advanced national strategy led by the Bahraini leadership, which included developing qualitative education, continuous vocational training, and promoting a culture of digital innovation, Bahrain launched the “Youth and Digital Innovation” program to train more than 10,000 young people annually on the skills of artificial intelligence and modern technologies, in cooperation with international institutions, as well as the policies of the labor market to encourage entrepreneurship and facilitate the establishment of Small projects, creating an incubator environment for global competition.
In comparison with other countries with similar challenges, Bahrain stands out as an integrated model that links youth empowerment and economic and social development, a model to be informed regionally and globally, on this international day, countries must re -evaluate their priorities to ensure the provision of a comprehensive environment that supports education, training and employment for youth, because they are the main pillar of the stability and progress of nations.
Young people remain the pulse of the nation and its living spirit, and the true bets on them to build a more just and prosperous future, what Bahrain has achieved is not just numbers, but rather evidence of the power of wise planning and the forward -looking vision in building generations capable of facing the challenges of tomorrow with confidence and competence, the International Day for Youth is a renewed call for every society and government to enable its youth, because they are the basis of strength and real change.* Media and academic researcher
