The Mubarak Regime's Failed Youth Policies and the January Uprising

Abstract

Throughout its 30 years in power, the regime of President Mubarak failed to meet the needs of the younger generation. During the last ten years in particular, the gap between actual reality and the political rhetoric about empowering the young and allowing them to better their lives grew steadily. The regime failed to embrace a public policy for the youth that would be binding on all state institutions. It could not come up with clear goals in education, employment and political initiation. The considerable funding that went into improving the output of the educational process and creating jobs for the youth did not change this reality. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Party (NDP) placed unrealistic hopes on the commitment and loyalty of its young members, whose failure to support the regime became clear during the January 25th uprising. The regime's focus was on activities aimed to fill the time of young people, rather than on political activities that were open to all young people, regardless of their political and intellectual affiliations.