Nasser Saidi, chief economist and head of external relations, Dubai International Financial Center Authority, stressed that radical educational reforms should start at the level of kindergarten with a focus on mathematics and quantitative science.

Addressing the Jeddah Economic Forum on Sunday, he said the regional education system should ensure that university graduates possessed skills and talents that matched the needs of employers.

Saidi, one of the four speakers at Session 4 titled “The Great Transformation”, noted the benefits of the proposed Gulf monetary union and a common currency, which he said would help strengthen regional integration.

He highlighted the need for a new international monetary system, recognizing the role of Chinese yuan and currencies of emerging economies.

He said Saudi and GCC leaders should opt for “strategic and forward-looking” measures to ensure that the youth are equipped with competitive skills to get jobs anywhere in the world.

The Dubai-based economist was joined by Yusuf Alireza, head of securities and member of management committee, Goldman Sachs; Nouriel Roubini, chairman and founder, Roubini Global Economics and Robert Hormats, undersecretary of state for economic, business and agricultural affairs.

The session was moderated by Kishore Mahbubani, dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.

BBC World News anchor Mishal Husain welcomed the speakers.

Professor Kishore, responding to a query on political reforms in the region, acknowledged that Egyptian youth are brave, resourceful and dynamic but stressed that future economic success there “is difficult and not guaranteed.”

Commenting on Egypt’s march toward a new era, he said some of the hard work had been successfully completed but there was harder work ahead.

“It will be painful. There will be dark moments.”

Stressing that he is not anti-West, the Singaporean academic the Western dominance of world history is at an end. “But it’s not the end of the West. The West will remain as a strong civilization for a long time to come.”

He pointed out that the number of Chinese and Indian students joining US universities had been on the rise. This has further boosted the economies of the two Asian giants, he said.

US official Robert Hormats said the region’s youngsters should have access to world-class education, which in turn would lead to sustainable growth.

Alireza said Middle East states deserved a chance to implement their version of political reforms and Western plans should not be imposed on them.

He pointed out that the Chinese model of governance had been more effective than that of  India in achieving economic targets, while stressing on the GCC’s need to focus on sound fiscal policies and investment in human capital.

Other speakers too analyzed the strong roles of China and India in global trade and economics.

There is a major shift toward the East, they said, adding that oil-rich economies should invest in innovative enterprises and move away from what they termed as the "resource curse".  They all agreed that the Gulf region has a great future.

Roubini, the economist who predicted the global financial crisis, shared his assessment of his regional developments with forum participants.

“Openness is critical,” he said, adding that “transferring money” might not be the ideal solution. He called for additional steps to promote equality and empower women, youth and minority groups.