BRITISH COUNCIL LAUNCHES NEXT GENERATION LEBANON RESEARCH REPORT

The British Council launched today the Next Generation Lebanon research report. Over 50academics, key decision-makers from grassroots to policy-making level around discussed the findings of the research and the continued relevance of a new social contract, and the contested notion of ‘Lebanese resilience’.

In 2019, the British Council in Lebanon commissioned Connecting Research to Development (CRD) to conduct a quantitative and qualitative research aimed to provide an honest perspective on youth’s lives in Lebanon through the voices of all youth aged 18 to 35 in the country, including Lebanese, Palestinians, and Syrians. The research was completed in January 2020 at a time where young people and the country as a whole faced momentous milestones and challenges; 30 years since the end of the civil war and signing of the Taif Accord, a political, an economic and currency crisis, the 17 October 2019 uprising, the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and continued stress from the 2011 civil war in Syria.

Contextual changes that arose due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Beirut Blast and the deep socio-economic crisis and political deadlock interrupted the launch of the research. In response, the British Council commissioned Qualisus in 2021 to conduct Next Steps Lebanon, which purpose is to build upon the findings of the initial research taking into consideration the contextual developments.

David Knox, Country Director Lebanon, comments: “Despite these challenges, the research shows that there is far more that unites young people than divides them in Lebanon. At the British Council, we will renew our efforts to build trust and understanding by making our small contribution through working with all stakeholders, particularly young people themselves, to meet the aspirations mentioned in the research.”

Some of the key findings of the research include:

• Youth in Lebanon say UK is among the top 3 countries with most positive influence on Lebanon.

• More than 65% of all youth say Lebanese education system needs serious reform

• 71% of youth believe personal connections or“Wasta” are more important than qualifications to succeed

• Young people in Lebanon think their behaviours, attitudes and interactions are still influenced by civil war mentalities passed on by their parents and the political parties remaining in power since the war.

• Youth political engagement has increased significantly since October 2019 uprising but dipped dramatically after Beirut

Next Generation is a global research programme by the British Council that is initiated in countries that are experiencing a period of significant change. The series has the purpose of ensuring that young people’s voices are heard, and their interests properly represented in decisions that will have lasting implications for their lives. The research series has been conducted in countries including Colombia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Sri Lanka, United Kingdom and Zimbabwe.

Source: National News Agency