Alwari, Fatima Mohammed Abdulrahim;
(2024)
National Youth Development Policies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE): How UAE's Policies and Programmes for Youth relate to and influence Young Emiratis Education and Career Choices.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
In diversifying its economy beyond oil income, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) faces a number of challenges, including developing Emiratis’ skills and capabilities, improving the national education system and outcomes, creating job opportunities, rebalancing the social contract and addressing labour market fragmentation. In 2016, the UAE took the initiative to institutionalise the youth sector by appointing a youth minister and establishing the Federal Youth Authority (FYA). However, despite extensive government efforts to boost the employment of young nationals in the private sector, the saturation of Emiratis in the public sector continues. New policies have been introduced in parallel to bridge the talent gap and attract more foreign labour. Using a multi-stage design, my research investigated what influences FYA youth policies, what influences young nationals’ choices around education and employment, and how Emirati youth perceive and engage with the government’s efforts. A qualitative approach was taken to explore the factors influencing government policy and to understand the perceptions of young nationals. This was done by examining 23 FYA documents, conducting one-on-one interviews with senior policymakers and policy practitioners in the UAE Government, and conducting focus groups with 54 young nationals. The research findings provide evidence which could serve UAE youth policymaking processes and better utilise young nationals’ potentials in relation to the UAE’s economic visions. This thesis tells a story about a relatively underexplored field in academic literature. The findings include information on how social and cultural structures influence young Emiratis’ choices, how the pre-existing social contract shapes the attitudes of many youth (including their rentier mentality), and how political institutions influence policymaking and youth. Accordingly, this research provides recommendations and potential solutions to achieve more effective development among Emirati youth.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | National Youth Development Policies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE): How UAE's Policies and Programmes for Youth relate to and influence Young Emiratis Education and Career Choices |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2024. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Social Research Institute |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10197574 |
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