️”It is crucial to unlock the future world leaders through higher education. There’s a potential to lead through influence: digitalisation, mobility, cooperation”,

Selim Mekdessi, Coordinator of the UNIMED SubNetwork on Employability

UNIMED delegation team participated in the Mediterranean Education and talent MEDA talk as part of MedaWeek Barcelona 2022. The team was composed by UNIMED Director, Dr. Marcello Scalisi along with Prof. Selim Mekdessi, from the Lebanese University, Coordinator of the UNIMED SubNetwork on Employability and Dr. Ashraf Bany Mohammed, from the University of Jordan, UNIMED expert on Employability and Entrepreneurship,

The Mediterranean Week of Economic Leaders (MedaWeek) – jointly organized by the Association of the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASCAME) and the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Navigation – since 2006 is a annual event. This year’s edition took place in Barcelona from 16th to 18th of November and brought together key private sector leaders, intellectuals, and innovators through a wide variety of forums that promote socio-economic development of the Mediterranean countries.

In the panel of the Mediterranean Education and Talent MedaTalk, UNIMED team tackled key issues such as youth, skills, and future jobs.

In his speech Dr. Scalisi introduced the work of UNIMED and how UNIMED activities are building bridges between higher education systems in the Mediterranean countries on one side while developing closer links with the private sector. Dr. Scalisi stressed the need for more internationalized, agile and innovative higher education systems that can produce more market relevant graduates and research that match the private sector needs.

Prof. Mekdessi, from his side, highlighted the efforts of UNIMED SubNetwork on Employability and the different programs and experiences of UNIMED members in leveraging youth skills to match the market needs. At the same time, Prof. Mekdessi stated that universities need to increase the opportunities for more proper and relevant training and internship to their graduates to be able to match the changing market demands.

Dr. Bany Mohammed presented a comprehensive framework that need to be in place to re-introduce universities as leaders in research, innovation and skills factories. This needs a solid and swift transformation of educators, curricula and research. Moreover, Dr. Bany Mohammed introduced the efforts of UNIMED to build more relevant networks of innovation and partnerships between universities and business across the Mediterranean.

It is worth mentioning that UNIMED participation in the MedaWeek Barcelona 2022, come as part of the efforts to create more inclusive partnerships between business, academia and government throughout the region.

You can watch the recording here