Gap Alert: Youth Development
Severity: AMBER
The Youth Development Index has improved to 0.68 from 0.611 but the gap to the top-40 threshold remains substantial.
Gap Analysis
While the overall score has improved, youth unemployment at approximately 13 percent and limited civic-participation channels weigh heavily on the composite. The employment and opportunity sub-index is the weakest dimension, reflecting the disconnect between educational output and labour-market absorption. Youth mental-health indicators are also lagging behind peer countries.
What Needs to Change
Address youth unemployment as a national priority through demand-side measures including private-sector job creation in youth-attractive sectors like technology and creative industries, combined with supply-side reforms including career counselling and internship mandates. Expand channels for youth civic engagement and policy input.
Risk Assessment
Amber severity. Youth development is both a social imperative and an economic one. Oman’s demographic profile means that young people are the workforce of Vision 2040. Failure to develop their potential undermines the entire national strategy and could create social-stability risks.
Recommended Interventions
Priority interventions: create a National Youth Employment Guarantee for graduates within 12 months of completing education; expand startup incubators targeting youth entrepreneurs; mandate youth advisory boards for all government ministries; invest in mental-health services tailored to young people; and establish a youth-development performance dashboard reported to the Council of Ministers quarterly.
This gap alert is issued by the Oman Vision 2040 Research Unit and is updated quarterly. Severity levels: GREEN (on/ahead of track), AMBER (gap widening but recoverable), RED (structural gap requiring urgent intervention). Data sources include NCSI, World Bank WGI, IMF, and relevant international indices.