The Arab
Youth Survey 2020 ranked the United Arab Emirates as the most desirable country
in the world for young Arab to live in for a ninth year. According to the
survey, the UAE is considered the safest country in the region and in the
world, and the promise of higher salaries is among the main reasons for the
country’s continuing popularity.
The survey,
which collected the views of 4,000 young men and women across 17 Arab countries,
confirmed the data of a recent report published by global database Numbeo,
which ranked the UAE as one of the safest countries in the world. In fact, UAE
secured a safety index score of 84.55 points and a crime index score of 15.45
in 2020. The interviewed were all between the ages of 18 and 24, across 17
states.
Almost half
of those who took part in the survey, 46 per cent, expressed their dream to
live or is planning to go in the UAE looking for better living conditions. The
previous year 44 percent opted for the UAE, an increase of nine per cent from
2019. To the question regarding the top five nations were to live, most of Arab
youth said to dream living in the UAE, 33 percent in the United States, 27
percent in UK and Canada, while Germany collected 22 percent of preferences.
Abu Dhabi was also named as the model to emulate for their country of origin by
52 per cent of those who took part in the survey, compared to 42 per cent of
previous year.
The US
ranked second with 30 percent, followed by Germany with 23 percent, Canada 21
per cent, and Japan with 20 per cent of preferences. According to Hussein
Ibish, senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
DC, there is a perception about the overall quality of life in the UAE that is
putting it on a par with, and indeed ahead of, the most prominent western
states as a domicile of choice and model for national emulation for so many
young Arabs. The modern Gulf country is perceived as a safe and stable
environment in a frequently unsafe and unstable region.
What
attracts young people are not only the earning opportunities, but also the
efficiency of the state, the recognition of forward-looking leadership, and the
ability of the authorities to manage any emergency such as occurred during the
covid-19 pandemic. That explains why the UAE is considered a model by citizens
of Arab countries, which struggle to provide stability, security and job opportunities.
Also, there is the cultural factor. The Emirates are perceived as the right
balanced relationship between tradition and modernity, tolerance and religion.
Twenty-five
percent of the interviewed affirmed that the UAE is a good place to raise a
family, having a high-quality education system (23 per cent); respect for
cultural traditions (20 per cent); and the nation’s strong cultural heritage
(17 per cent). It must be said that the World Happiness Report also named the
UAE as the happiest region in the world for the sixth consecutive year,
confirming that the Emirates is the right place where to be.
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