Youth from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have not abandoned their heritage despite desiring western brands and lifestyles, a new survey says. “On the one hand, MENA teens are much more closely tied to their families, culture and religion as compared to their global counterparts,” said Gagan Bhalla, general manager of AMRB, a Middle Eastern market research firm. “But on the other hand, they are very similar to global teens in terms of brand exposure, technological awareness and future aspirations.” The survey was conducted by face-to-face interviews with 2,000 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19 from different social backgrounds in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. The areas covered by the survey ranged from daily life and consumption, interest in sports and celebrities to political opinions and values. “MENA teens are not anti-West ¬¬– most of their favorite brands are Western brands and they do believe that the US is the most influential country in the world today,” said the report. Ram Dhara, research director at AMRB, told The Media Line that the purpose of the survey was “to understand Teens from a holistic perspective – starting from their daily lives, teens as consumers, their associations with and perceptions about brands, their lifestyle, views and opinions about a variety of topics.” “Middle East and North African teens are seen to be more closely tied to their families, culture and religion as compared to their global counterparts,” Dhara said. “But they are very similar to global teens in terms consumerism, i.e. brand exposure, technological awareness and future aspirations.” These are the most important findings of the survey, said Dhara. The report notes that youth in the affluent United Arab Emirates tend to spend $71 on clothes every month, which is three times higher than the global average of $21. “Middle East and North African teens are at the crossroads of civilization,” Dhara said. “At one level, there are deep set traditional values and at another level there are enticements like cell phones, Internet, brands, Westernized celebrities, etc.” According to the survey one reason for the popularity of blogs and web forums in the region is the restrictions put on these teens. “Lives of Middle East and North African teens are much more restricted and regulated than their counterparts in other parts of the world. Exposure and expression for girls is quite limited and the meteoric rise in popularity of talk shows and blogging indicates a need for greater self expression,” said the report. Esra'a Al Shafei, Director of MidEast Youth, a Bahrain based human rights and youth dialogue group, said that the political engagement of teens depends on where they live. “A Lebanese and Egyptian teenager is way more likely to have strong political opinions than those in the Gulf,” Al Shafei told The Media Line. “This is just out of my personal experiences working with bloggers in the region.” “Many youth are interested in politics, but not many would consider themselves activists or are interested in getting heavily involved,” she said. “In the Gulf, there are many young political activists, but they are certainly unique and within a small minority.” While analysts said some Western influences have a positive impact on local youth, not all are welcome. “Our youth are always attracted to experiencing new things and alcohol, just like smoking, is one of those things,” Mohammed Aboelenein, chairman of the Department of Sociology at the United Arab Emirates University, told The Media Line. “I lived in the US for many years and saw how drinking alcohol among the youth represents a big problem there,” he said. “I don't wish to see this situation repeating itself here.” “Drinking is a counter-productive behavior and our societies are in dire need of becoming productive societies,” Aboelenein said.
