Education is meant to prepare young people for the future. But we need to ask an honest question: Are our schools preparing young people for life, or mainly for examinations?
Across Africa and the Arab world, many young people leave school with academic qualifications but limited knowledge of how to manage money, find employment, start a business, cope with pressure or make responsible decisions in an increasingly digital world.
These are not minor gaps. They affect how young people live, work and participate in society.
One of the biggest challenges facing formal education is therefore the limited emphasis on practical life skills.
Financial Literacy: Preparing Young People to Manage Money
Financial literacy should not be something young people discover only after making costly mistakes. Students need to understand basic concepts such as budgeting, saving, responsible borrowing, investing, inflation and simple contracts.
Consider a young person in Uganda, Ghana, Kenya or Morocco who earns money for the first time. Without basic financial knowledge, it can be easy to spend everything, fall into unnecessary debt or lose money to scams. The same challenge faces young people entering increasingly competitive job markets in countries such as Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
Teaching young people how money works can help them make better decisions, whether they become employees, entrepreneurs or community leaders.
Having a certificate does not automatically guarantee a job or a successful business. Young people also need to know how to identify opportunities and present themselves professionally.
Schools can equip students with practical skills such as CV writing, interview preparation, professional communication, networking and identifying legitimate employment opportunities.
Entrepreneurship and self-directed learning should also form part of education, helping young people understand that learning does not end when they leave school.
This is particularly important in Africa, where many young people are creating their own opportunities through small businesses, agriculture, technology, creative industries and the informal economy.
Mental Well-being Matters Too:
Young people face pressures that academic knowledge alone cannot solve. Academic competition, unemployment, family expectations, relationship challenges, financial difficulties and social media can all affect their confidence and well-being.
Schools should therefore equip students with simple but essential tools for managing stress, communicating effectively, dealing with failure, setting healthy boundaries and seeking help when necessary.
A young person who learns how to handle failure is better prepared to try again. A young person who can communicate effectively and resolve disagreements peacefully is better prepared for leadership.
Technology is transforming how people learn, work, communicate and do business. From mobile money and online businesses in East Africa to growing digital economies in North Africa and the Gulf, young people are already part of this transformation.
But owning a smartphone is not the same as being digitally skilled.
Young people need to know how to use technology for learning and work, protect their personal information, identify misinformation, avoid online scams and develop digital skills that can create genuine economic opportunities.
Digital literacy should therefore go beyond teaching students how to operate devices. It should help them become responsible, informed and productive participants in the digital economy.
The answer is not to abandon academic subjects. Mathematics, science, languages and other disciplines remain essential. The challenge is to connect what students learn in the classroom with the realities they will encounter outside it.
Imagine a school where students learn mathematics and also learn how to prepare a personal budget; where computer lessons include online safety and digital work; where career guidance includes CV writing and interview preparation; and where students learn how to respond to failure rather than fear it.
This is the kind of education that can make learning more relevant and meaningful.
Governments, schools, universities, businesses, youth organisations and communities all have a role to play in making this possible.
Africa and the Arab world possess one of the greatest assets any region could ask for: a young, energetic and ambitious population. But young people need more than certificates. They need the confidence, knowledge and practical skills to turn opportunities into livelihoods and ideas into solutions.
Education should teach young people not only how to pass examinations, but also how to navigate life.
If we truly want young people to become entrepreneurs, professionals, responsible citizens and effective leaders, then the time has come to move beyond the classroom and make education work for real life.
The author is the Liaisons and partnerships manager at the Afro-Arab Youth Council
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