The United Arab Emirates is joining countries around the world today in celebrating World Youth Skills Day, reaffirming its commitment to continued investment in people and to enhancing the capabilities of new generations through a comprehensive system of initiatives aimed at developing future skills and empowering young people to contribute effectively to the journey of development and the shaping of the future.
The occasion, established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2014, is observed on 15 July each year with the aim of highlighting the strategic importance of equipping young people with the skills needed for employment, decent work, and entrepreneurship, and of strengthening their role in addressing future challenges.
This year's celebration carries the theme "Skills for a Shared Future" and focuses on the importance of building a comprehensive skills ecosystem that combines technical and digital capabilities, artificial intelligence skills, and green, social, and human skills, so as to enhance young people's ability to keep pace with accelerating transformations.
The UAE's participation in this occasion reflects a well-established national approach to youth empowerment through programmes and initiatives targeting the development of young people's capabilities, in alignment with the UAE Centennial 2071 targets and the National Youth Agenda 2031, to prepare a generation capable of leading the future and contributing to the achievement of sustainable development.
On this occasion, His Excellency Dr Sultan bin Saif Al Neyadi, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, affirmed that the occasion represents an opportunity to renew the commitment to investing in people as the most important national wealth, and an embodiment of the UAE's approach to empowering youth and preparing them to lead the future, in line with the vision of the wise leadership, which has placed human development and the enhancement of competitiveness as a central pillar of the sustainable development journey.
He said that rapid global transformations, and the changes they impose on the labour market, the economy, and technology, make investment in future skills a strategic choice that enhances the readiness of UAE youth to lead new sectors and contribute to building a competitive knowledge economy founded on innovation and advanced technology.
He explained that the UAE has been keen to develop a comprehensive system that enables young people to acquire high-quality skills, broaden the horizons of continuous learning, and benefit from emerging technologies, foremost among them artificial intelligence, thereby enhancing their ability to innovate solutions, transform challenges into opportunities, and contribute effectively to achieving national development targets.
He added that the Youth Agenda 2031 reflects the UAE's vision for preparing a generation that possesses the skills, competencies, and values that qualify it to compete globally and enable it to contribute to shaping a more prosperous and sustainable future.
He affirmed that investment in youth is not limited to developing their capabilities, but extends to empowering them to create impact, participate in decision-making, and transform their ambitions into quality achievements that reinforce the UAE's standing and leadership at both the regional and international levels.