JOBS FOR JORDAN: The Unemployment Epidemic in the Middle East

Run time: 08:54 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjWDF5kKtIM   Posted on YouTube: July 14, 2008 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: July 14, 2008 By DU Member: Hot Potato Mash Views on DU: 382

 
Part 2 (9:47): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YBu91d6LHA

Part 3 (4:51): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqU9QmCyKfc

From NOW on PBS:

An unemployment epidemic in the Middle East: what does it mean for America?

NOW travels to Jordan to explore the implications of - and possible solutions to - having millions of young people out of work in the Middle East. Staggering unemployment rates among the region's massive youth population is fueling anger, frustration and resentment.

To combat the problem, Jordan's Queen Rania has made job creation a top priority. “To me the Middle East is about young people. And if we fail to create opportunities for them then you're going to see a lot of frustrated hope,” she tells NOW.

Another initiative comes from an unlikely source: a Brooklyn, New York businessman who has set up programs across the region to give young people the real world skills they desperately need to gain employment. Both have their work cut out for them: nearly 70 million jobs are needed in the Middle East by the year 2020, according to the World Bank.

Can these training programs work to stem the tide or are they just a drop in the bucket?