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Middle East and North Africa

Before the ‘Arab Spring’, which sparked major political conflicts across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the region already had some of the highest rates of youth unemployment in the world.

Now, with huge population displacement, countries in MENA absorb the highest rates of asylum seekers worldwide. Young people from host communities, ambitious migrants and refugees are eager to join the workforce, but a lack of jobs can lead youth into poverty, dangerous migration journeys or radicalisation by extremist groups.

This regions locations

SPARK in the Middle East and North Africa targets vulnerable youth and supports them on their path to employment. Whether it is entering higher (vocational) education, getting an internship at a local company, starting or growing a business, SPARK assists host communities and refugees to realise their potential to obtain and create jobs.

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You can shoot an arrow only by pulling it back.

— Braa Bakfalouni, Student, Turkey