Zawaya

Unemployment is a pernicious disease

By: Nabila Saidoune

Between the formal and informal, figures about unemployment are interposed, giving rise to a real controversy. Unemployment is an acute issue in the Arab world, and its recurrence is strongly maintained to the point of becoming similar to a pernicious disease that is implanting its tentacles in the society, invalidating all statistics and surveys referring to it.

The unemployment curve has been decreasing in Algeria since 2001, and it currently stands at a rate of 11% thanks to a well-known dynamic initiative that started about 10 years ago. The micro credit schemes that were launched since 2000, and which have been re-launched through the programme of the strengthened economic recovery, have the same objective as their successor- the five-year plan which is doing its share of the job in the quest to curb unemployment.

Some major projects can be considered a significant springboard to support this political will, namely the east-west highway, major hydraulic works such as dams and transfers, assistance to SMBs, and privatization. However, the problem resides in the current global economic crisis which has not yet finished spreading its “evils”, and which has taken down the most optimistic views. It is clear, also, that job precariousness is amplifying the saturation of the job market. Moreover, the new industrial strategy has not yet borne fruit, agriculture is struggling to find its way, and foreign investors are not pushing each other out of the way. As a result, thousands of youth join the ranks of the active population every year.

Unemployment has other visible effects on society, such as juvenile delinquency, petty crime, suicide, and also the emergence of the phenomenon of “Harraga” which is reaching alarming proportions.

The situation is not rosy in other neighboring countries (Tunisia) or even distant ones (Turkey) either. Therefore, a pan-Arab approach is more than necessary under the current era of globalization. Debates become meaningful as, beyond the economic aspect, unemployment becomes a moral and societal issue. This is why it is vital for countries to be endowed with a good education system, and offer learning opportunities throughout life. However, the high rate of unemployment among young graduates shows that quality education has very little use if it is not paired with a dynamic and growing global economy…