A report by the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) titled “Youth Unemployment in Arab Countries” recently caught my eye. The report estimated the youth unemployment rate in Arab countries at 43.4 percent as compared to 12.7 percent globally. The report further stated: “The educated category in Arab countries represents 40 percent of the total unemployed”.
While no exact figures are given for individual Arab countries, we can assume that Saudi Arabia is no exception. Unemployed educated youth represent a time bomb that is ticking continuously given the present turmoil in the Arab world with the presence of Daesh (the self-proclaimed IS) and other militant groups.
Being an expat in Saudi Arabia, I am well aware of the Saudi government’s drive for Saudization in all spheres of the national economy. The attempts aimed at the inclusion of citizens in public and private sector jobs are resented by some who think that it is a violation of the rights of expatriates who have played a major role in the development of the Kingdom.
But such claims and sentiments are not justified since the citizens of any country always have the first right to the resources and economic fruits of their motherland. We expats should be thankful for being able to work here for a few years and having the opportunity to earn an amount which might have taken us much longer to amass in our own countries.
There are several sectors of the Saudi economy which offer great opportunities for youth. One such sector is tourism. Tourism is considered one of the most important economic sectors in terms of providing job opportunities and in terms of Saudization.
Quite often we come across news about the Saudi government’s plans to develop the tourism sector in order to provide jobs to youth people. Quite recently the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage predicted that 1.7 million jobs would be created in the Kingdom’s tourism sector by 2020. The possibility of the country offering tourist visas has also been discussed in the news for some time.
However, if Saudi Arabia is eyeing international tourism, there is a lot the country has to do before opening its doors for international tourists. Saudi society is quite conservative and European tourists will not appreciate it if they find undo restrictions on their movement or behavior. The country also has to offer more attractions in addition to the already existing shopping malls and beaches since tourists can find these in other countries of the world.
However, local and regional tourism offers wonderful employment opportunities for youth. I visited my home country Pakistan recently and was amazed this year to see the growth in domestic tourism all due to private tour agencies and young university graduates who are running the industry successfully either as a part-time or full-time business. Pakistan has suffered a big blow in terms of international tourism in the past decade due to security concerns. Many people in the beautiful northern areas of the country and the Kashmir region depend on tourism for their livelihood. To make up for the loss of international tourism, young people have come forward and have taken the reins of the once-thriving industry in their hands. There are numerous small-scale tourist companies and groups in urban areas these days which are being run by young university graduates. The involvement of youth in domestic tourism has given a surge to tourist activities in the country. People who cannot reach those difficult mountainous areas by themselves are arranging their family vacation through such tour managers.
In addressing the issue of youth unemployment, a genuine question is: What can young people do to complement the government’s efforts to combat the unemployment challenge?
The report by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage puts travel agencies at the bottom of the list with a two percent share in the total number of jobs in the tourism sector. As an expat, I have been yearning for years to visit some of the most notable cities and tourist attractions in the Kingdom but because I do not know the language and also because of a lack of information and assistance in arranging local trips, I have not been able to go beyond four major cities.
The absence or extreme shortage of reliable travel and tour agencies is one of the major causes of the lack of domestic tourist activities in the country. Educated Saudi youth could come forward to fill the void and set up small enterprises. A small-scale business could be started and run from a virtual office. Social media is a great weapon in the hands of youth which they can harness to serve their purpose. Young men and women could work in small groups to arrange group tours to local destinations for both nationals and expats on weekends and during long study breaks. The Saudi education system offers ample vacations throughout the year. If domestic tourist activities are readily on offer, there will surely be a decrease in the number of citizens and residents who go abroad on vacation.
Young Saudis know their country, its attractions, means of transportation and accommodation facilities better than expats. Many expats would love to explore the local destinations of the host country during their stay in the Kingdom. Short trips could also be arranged to neighboring Arab countries like Jordan, Oman and Egypt with travel agencies facilitating the process for obtaining a visa. To overcome language and communication problems, young Saudis could employ some bilingual peers, both male and female, to ease communication with those who are unfamiliar with Arabic. Seeing the immense success of the youth-run domestic tourism industry in Pakistan and in many other parts of the world, I can safely predict that the idea will not fail to give a much-needed boost to the local tourism industry and create self-employment opportunities for young Saudis, as well.
Ayesha Abida Zafar
