Point of View

Navtej Dhillon and Diana Greenwald argue that, despite a difficult political climate, the 'Union for the Mediterranean' can exceed expectations by convening European and Arab leaders around a pressing and shared interest: the need to improve economic outcomes for millions of young people in the broader Middle East.

Contrary to recent findings by the Central Bank of Iran, Brookings Visiting Fellow Djavad Salehi-Isfahani argues poverty rates in Iran are not high when compared to international standards for developing countries, nor do they appear to be rising. However, income inequality is on the rise and poses a challenge to President Ahmadinejad in his 2009 re-election bid.

MEYI’s Youth Ambassador Think Tank is a forum to encourage active discussion on topics of timely relevance to Middle Eastern youth. Our second topic deals with regional reactions to the upcoming U.S. elections.

Samar Mezghanni joins us as a Youth Ambassador from Tunis, Tunisia, where she is currently studying psychology at the High Institute of Human Sciences in Tunis.

Radwan Wetti joins us as a Youth Ambassador from Damascus, Syria, where he is a Business Experience Program Manager for the SHABAB Project at the Syria Trust for Development.

Samar Mezghanni joins us as a Youth Ambassador from Tunis, Tunisia, where she is currently studying psychology at the High Institute of Human Sciences in Tunis.

MEYI is launching the Youth Ambassador Think Tank: a forum to encourage active discussion on topics of timely relevance to Middle Eastern youth. Our first topic deals with concepts of participation and the "generation gap."

Joulan Abdulkhalek is our Youth Ambassador from Beirut, Lebanon, where he is obtaining his Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the American University of Beirut (AUB).