Edraak CEO Shares the Importance of Skilling MENA’s Youth and Open Online Resources

This episode of the Riyada podcast looks at one of the main features of the workforce development challenge in the MENA region: the skills mismatch. The asymmetry between employers’ needs and job seekers’ capabilities is caused in part by an archaic education system on the ‘supply side’ and need to strengthen the entrepreneurship ecosystem on the ‘demand side’.

One organization dedicated to closing this gap is Edraak, a massive open online course (MOOC) platform and key initiative of the Queen Rania Foundation in Jordan. Merissa Khurma and Imad Shawa spoke with Shireen Yacoub, CEO of Edraak since 2017, who leads the company’s skills strategy, preparing youth for the digital economy. Shireen is also an advocate for education reform and the creation of digital Arab open resources. 

Listen on  Amazon Music

This podcast was funded by a grant from the United States Department of State. The opinions, findings and conclusions stated herein are those of the guests and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of State.