Youth in the South East Mediterranean Region and the Need for a Political Economy Approach

The paper is the authors’ own elaboration of the POWER2YOUTH research results and research experience. The authors argue for the importance of placing both the problems of youth in the South East Mediterranean, as well as the construction of the youth category itself and the narratives associated with it, within the broader political economy processes of the region. The first part of the paper concentrates on the political economy behind ‘youth problems’, whereas the second part critically analyses ‘youth’ in relation to social change and mobilization.