How can countries in Southern and Eastern Europe and Central Asia – a region the British Council calls 'Wider Europe' – prepare their young populations to be successful? Helen Silvester, our Director of Education in Wider Europe, explains the economic and educational issues with which this vast, diverse region is grappling.
Which countries are part of 'Wider Europe'?
The region the British Council calls 'Wider Europe' spans 15 countries east and south of the European Union, from Tirana to Vladivostok and from the Arctic to the Mediterranean. These countries are where Europe meets Asia and the Middle East. It's a dynamic, fast-changing region, with rapidly emerging economies, young and sometimes still developing democracies, and deep-seated tensions.
A young, energetic post-Cold War generation
One third of the total population of 350 million are under the age of 24, so were born after the end of the Cold War. These young people are far more internationally aware and connected than older generations, with access to exchange programmes such as the EU's Erasmus Plus. They are among the biggest users of social media anywhere in the world: 92 per cent of Turkey's online population use social media, the highest share in the world. Many of the countries in this region are emerging from a period of isolation, so the ability of these young people to prosper will be critical for the success of their societies and economies.
Young people struggle to find jobs in many of these countries
In large parts of the region, youth unemployment is a major concern. All six countries of the Western Balkans suffer significant youth unemployment. Youth unemployment in Bosnia and Herzegovina is over 60 per cent. In Macedonia, it is 54 per cent, and in Serbia it's over 50 per cent.
Elsewhere in the region, the situation is better, but problems remain. Turkey has an official youth unemployment rate of 17 per cent, but there are concerns about social inclusion and regional disparities. For instance, less than a third of Turkey's workforce are women. Similarly, youth unemployment in Israel is relatively low overall, but is significantly higher amongst ultra-orthodox and Arab communities.
In Russia and neighbouring countries, the nature of the issue is yet again different. In Russia, latent unemployment and lack of stable employment for young people are major issues. It is estimated that nearly one in three Russian graduates under the age of 25 do not have full-time jobs. Many cannot find work that uses their educational skills and every fifth graduate works freelance, instead of for a regular employer.
Education should be better matched to the needs of businesses in the region
One frequently cited reason why youth unemployment in this region is so high is that the quality of education is uneven, and doesn't necessarily provide the relevant skills needed by local industries.
Let’s take Turkey as an example. Some analysts point to massive progress in quality and access to education under the current government. Indeed, there has been a marked increase in enrolment rates in both secondary and higher education over the last decade.
Yet despite these improvements, a period of rapid economic growth, and an ambition to be one of the world’s top ten economies by 2023, Turkey's overall education attainment rates have remained low compared to other OECD countries. Alongside Mexico, Turkey ranks lowest across OECD countries in the percentage of its population aged 25 to 34 who have completed at least secondary education, with fewer than half (46 per cent) of Turkish people achieving this. This compares with, for example, 98 per cent in Korea, 94 per cent in a number of new EU member states and 90 per cent in Israel.
Turkey has serious plans for expansion and improvement of its higher education, and the fact that there are now four Turkish universities in the world’s top 200 is testament to that. However, as in other countries in this region, there's widespread recognition that education must be made relevant to the labour market's needs.
Employers want graduates with better vocational skills
This means there's a need to provide young people with the requisite technical skills to work effectively in the region's core and expanding industries. These include oil and gas in Russia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan; construction, information and communication technology, and advanced manufacturing in Turkey; and tourism and agribusiness across the whole of the region. Turkey's tourism sector, for example, is one of the biggest in the world. More than 32 million foreign tourists visited Turkey in 2012, bringing in $24 billion of revenue. That same year, Turkey was the sixth most-visited country in the world.
...but strictly technical skills aren't enough
However, technical skills are only part of the story. Globally, employers are saying they need young people with effective transferable skills, who are socially and emotionally adept. The Confederation of British Industry has pointed to resilience and self-management as key skills sought by employers, while a World Bank study in Uzbekistan shows employers perceive gaps in language abilities, accepting responsibility, self-motivation and creativity. Universities and colleges therefore need to work more closely with industry to develop courses that cultivate these skills.
Traditional, knowledge-based courses are still common across the region. But there's increasing recognition that students need to learn entrepreneurial skills and 21st century skills such as Internet literacy, and that meaningful work experience should form part of their studies.
There's no shortage of entrepreneurial energy here
Certainly, enterprise and creativity aren't lacking. Tel Aviv is believed to have the highest density of start-ups anywhere in the world, and according to Business Monitor International predictions, Turkey looks to be the fastest-growing IT market in the five-year period between 2009 and 2014.
The success of entrepreneurial activity is reflected in the number of billionaires in the region. There are 90 in Russia, 24 in Turkey, 18 in Israel, and five in Kazakhstan, a country just a little over 20 years old. There are plenty of stories like that of Turkish food delivery start-up Yemek Sepeti, which has gone from its beginnings delivering four or five meals a day to friends, to holding a 90 per cent market share in Turkey, delivering 150,000 meals a day, and opening its first international branch. To give the best opportunities to the most young people, this entrepreneurial spirit should be put to use and made mainstream throughout the education system.
What's happening to improve vocational education?
Governments across the region care about these issues. In Turkey and the Western Balkans, European Commission Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA) projects (which provide financial and technical help to countries that may join the European Union in the future) are already funding the development of relevant, inclusive vocational and technical education.
Developing skills and improving young people's employment prospects are on the policy agendas of every country in the region. For example, the need to develop closer ties between industry and education has been written into Turkey’s Human Resource Development Plans for some time. And the Kazakh President’s new reforming strategy 'Kazakhstan 2050' makes it clear that vocational and higher education are essential to the country's economic growth.
What does the UK have to share?
To reduce unemployment, particularly among young people, the UK has invested a lot in developing better technical and vocational education and training (TVET), especially in apprenticeships. About half of the UK's £60 billion annual expenditure on TVET is provided by the government to cover the cost of learning for students, people already in work, young people and those who leave school without adequate qualifications. The remaining half is spent by businesses to improve their staff's skills, and by people paying for their own workplace training and professional development.
In the UK, employers have a strong role in identifying which skills are needed, establishing national skills strategies, setting occupational standards, developing the national qualifications framework, and talking to education providers and qualification-awarding bodies, to make sure that industry needs are met.
Over the past few years, there has been a lot of work in the UK to make qualifications, vocational courses and apprenticeships broader. That's because a narrow set of technical skills isn't enough to help a young person succeed professionally. They’ll also need literacy, numeracy, and other employability skills, to prepare them to make a difference to their communities, succeed in their chosen careers -- which are likely to change and evolve during the course of their lifetimes -- and live happy, fulfilled lives.
Our See Into The Future initiative brings together government policy-makers, university and college professionals, business representatives and students from the UK and across Southern and Eastern Europe and Central Asia to discuss skills, entrepreneurship and employment.
The See into the Future conference takes place in Astana on 18 and 19 November 2014. Join the debate through #SeeIntoTheFuture on Twitter.