Admitting the existence of a problem is the first step towards fixing it. In Saudi Arabia, we have a large and worsening unemployment problem. Two thirds of the population is under thirty with over 60 percent born after the 1991 Gulf War. Too many high school and college graduates can’t find suitable jobs and Saudis are still a minority in the private sector.
The first question that comes to mind is: How come we have seven million expatriates yet have an unemployment rate (males only, worse for women) estimated between 8-30 percent (depending on whom you ask and how you calculate)?
The solution, so far, has been Saudization — foreigners out, Saudis in. The trouble is we are dealing with only the symptoms; the disease lingers.
Let’s face it, our kids are not trained well enough for the real world. They study more theories than science; learn to memorize, but not to research; sit in class more than in labs, workshops and libraries; and speak barely more than Arabic.
When they enter the job market, they discover how poorly prepared they are.
State departments cannot take all the made-for-easy-chair graduates, so we throw them on the private sector in forced employment programs.
That is not fair to both sides. We should work on our education for the longer term.
In the meantime, we need practical training for school graduates. Both the state and private sector should set up enough training facilities to provide for all their needs, such as computer skills and foreign languages, especially English.
We need also to solve business’ concerns.
They complain about uncommitted workers and unhelpful regulations. You hire a manager today but tomorrow he leaves for a better job. Your shop is suddenly closed, since the person you trained, hired, and gave all your trade secrets to had a better offer from your competitor.
The young man hired to run your jewelry shop runs away with millions worth of diamond and gold. You run to the authorities and they ask you to bring him over yourself. And if you are lucky and bold enough to do so, they release him the next day on bail and direct you to overloaded courts.
Businessmen and women need and deserve better guarantees; after all they are Saudis, too.
These are simple solutions. My favorite idea is to increase the circle rather than limit the dancers. How? Let’s talk about it next Sunday.
Monday, March 21, 2005
Sunday, March 20, 2005
Why I Welcome Municipal Polls
Unlike a politician I can change my mind without being accused of waffling. So let me now admit this dramatic change: When a wise friend asked me, only a few weeks ago, about the municipal elections, I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic. Like many, I wasn’t sure what kind of authority the councils would have and what difference my vote would make in my life, and how a half-elected council could be strong and independent enough to take on the tough issues of the day and truly represent my aspirations and positions.
She told me then: There has to be a beginning — a first step — for everything. Saudi intellectuals have called for elections for a long time.
Yes, it is not as much as they hoped for. Yes, it isn’t 100 percent democratic for all members, since half are appointed. And yes, it is not for the Shoura Council, or even regional councils. But if this step went smoothly and worked well; if people chose wisely and their representatives acted as promised; and if candidates campaigned in a civilized, professional way, and accepted the results in sporting fashion, then the government would be encouraged to expand the experiment further.
Next it could be the Regional Council, and in a few years it could reach the Shoura Council. The percentage of elected officials would increase as well, my optimistic friend assured me. Women would get their vote, and people would have their say in making, implementing and auditing public policies and funds. Democracy thrives when established on a strong foundation and steady legs, she told me.
I wasn’t convinced then, but I changed my mind later. Two events moved me to the other side of the aisle. The first was reading the now-available bylaws of the council.
It includes preparing and auditing municipal budgets, deciding project priorities, suggesting new projects and deciding on sources of income.
This means council members will be able to improve the bureaucratic system. Budgets and spending procedures will be more transparent, rational and effective. Officials will be more accountable. Projects will be more appropriate and better prioritized. Most importantly, the people’s voices will be heard by the people’s choices.
The second event that changed my attitude toward elections is the success of Riyadh elections. The citizens of Riyadh chose well and wisely. They ignored the rich and powerful that thought that pouring millions into advertising campaigns, parties and speeches would be enough. On election day, those who won were the ones who knew their neighborhoods well and worked hard on charities and both social and community work before the elections were even on the horizon. All are well educated, smart and have integrity. They aren’t rich, but they have rich records of public service.
Tribal and family prestige and connections were not a factor. People chose those who would better express their hopes and aspirations, understand their concerns and problems and represent the average man. Of course, those who didn’t like the results have cried foul. They objected to the fact that most elected members are conservative Muslims and that they coordinated with one another — even though the law prohibits such coordination — and received the blessings of popular Islamic figures.
Assuming the winners did, and were the only ones who did so, what difference does it make to the final outcome? People identified with the winners, identified with their platforms, respected their qualifications, liked their election promises and trusted the candidates to fulfill them. This wouldn’t change if the elections were to be rerun — especially in the light of the wide gap between the winners and losers. All that such an attitude can achieve is to sully a great experience and give ammunition to those looking for an excuse to call the step a failure and halt a forward movement.
Now that objections have been submitted to the authorized committee, we should all await and accept their expert judgment. What couldn’t be achieved in this term can be examined and achieved in the next. And there are many lessons to learn, many improvements to make and many forward steps to take.
Women, will hopefully, be taken into account by candidates in other regions. You can’t claim to represent society if you only speak for half of it. In future elections, we hope women will not only be eligible to vote but also to run for office and/or be appointed. We also hope all members will be elected, and the process includes more councils, regional and national.
With this hope and newfound understanding, I’m now not only going to register to vote, as my wise friend advised, but I will also get involved in calling on citizens to vote, and campaign for those who best represent my views, and earned my trust.
She told me then: There has to be a beginning — a first step — for everything. Saudi intellectuals have called for elections for a long time.
Yes, it is not as much as they hoped for. Yes, it isn’t 100 percent democratic for all members, since half are appointed. And yes, it is not for the Shoura Council, or even regional councils. But if this step went smoothly and worked well; if people chose wisely and their representatives acted as promised; and if candidates campaigned in a civilized, professional way, and accepted the results in sporting fashion, then the government would be encouraged to expand the experiment further.
Next it could be the Regional Council, and in a few years it could reach the Shoura Council. The percentage of elected officials would increase as well, my optimistic friend assured me. Women would get their vote, and people would have their say in making, implementing and auditing public policies and funds. Democracy thrives when established on a strong foundation and steady legs, she told me.
I wasn’t convinced then, but I changed my mind later. Two events moved me to the other side of the aisle. The first was reading the now-available bylaws of the council.
It includes preparing and auditing municipal budgets, deciding project priorities, suggesting new projects and deciding on sources of income.
This means council members will be able to improve the bureaucratic system. Budgets and spending procedures will be more transparent, rational and effective. Officials will be more accountable. Projects will be more appropriate and better prioritized. Most importantly, the people’s voices will be heard by the people’s choices.
The second event that changed my attitude toward elections is the success of Riyadh elections. The citizens of Riyadh chose well and wisely. They ignored the rich and powerful that thought that pouring millions into advertising campaigns, parties and speeches would be enough. On election day, those who won were the ones who knew their neighborhoods well and worked hard on charities and both social and community work before the elections were even on the horizon. All are well educated, smart and have integrity. They aren’t rich, but they have rich records of public service.
Tribal and family prestige and connections were not a factor. People chose those who would better express their hopes and aspirations, understand their concerns and problems and represent the average man. Of course, those who didn’t like the results have cried foul. They objected to the fact that most elected members are conservative Muslims and that they coordinated with one another — even though the law prohibits such coordination — and received the blessings of popular Islamic figures.
Assuming the winners did, and were the only ones who did so, what difference does it make to the final outcome? People identified with the winners, identified with their platforms, respected their qualifications, liked their election promises and trusted the candidates to fulfill them. This wouldn’t change if the elections were to be rerun — especially in the light of the wide gap between the winners and losers. All that such an attitude can achieve is to sully a great experience and give ammunition to those looking for an excuse to call the step a failure and halt a forward movement.
Now that objections have been submitted to the authorized committee, we should all await and accept their expert judgment. What couldn’t be achieved in this term can be examined and achieved in the next. And there are many lessons to learn, many improvements to make and many forward steps to take.
Women, will hopefully, be taken into account by candidates in other regions. You can’t claim to represent society if you only speak for half of it. In future elections, we hope women will not only be eligible to vote but also to run for office and/or be appointed. We also hope all members will be elected, and the process includes more councils, regional and national.
With this hope and newfound understanding, I’m now not only going to register to vote, as my wise friend advised, but I will also get involved in calling on citizens to vote, and campaign for those who best represent my views, and earned my trust.
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