In order for the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region's financial industry to grow, a vibrant venture capital industry is needed, said Rasheed Al Maraj, Governor of the Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA).
Such an industry would help fund entrepreneurship and bring new dynamic companies to the market, Maraj added, according to <i> Gulf Daily News</i>.
"The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, according to World Bank estimates, needs to create 5 million new jobs a year for the next 20 years, if it is to reduce current levels of unemployment and, especially, provide jobs for the new generation of job seekers," said Maraj.
"A solution to this challenge cannot be achieved without a much larger and innovative private sector," he said, adding, "Only the private sector can create the additional jobs required."
Maraj made the comments at Tuesday's opening of the Gulf Venture Capital Association's (GVCA) first annual conference on Venture Capital and Private Equity at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Bahrain.
