Never before has technological advancement been as rapid and widespread as it is now — the past 30-odd years have seen more innovations and improvements and faster adoption of technologies than the past 100 years. Such has been the impact of automation and digitization that jobs done by humans are fast being taken over by bots and highly refined AI tools.
The relentless march of technology might be alarming to some sections of the population, but it is beneficial for others in revolutionary ways, such as by providing a learning opportunity. While millions of workers will need to change their occupations as more and more jobs get automated, technology will also enable them to find alternate livelihoods.
In the MENA region alone, as much as 45% of work activities are set to be automated in the coming years. The shift from one set of jobs to another will need a lot of re-skilling. As of now, there is a considerable skills gap in the region that will need to be bridged urgently. The good part of the story is that the MENA countries are highly adaptable, and the populations are very enterprising. It should not take the region long to learn the requisite skills to benefit from the advances made by technology.
Adapting to changed reality critical
Adapting to the changing scenario is key. As companies in all sectors deploy newer technologies, including but not limited to AI, workers will need to enhance their capabilities accordingly. Rapid advances in technology are bound to result in tectonic changes in the workplace. Higher efficiencies, accelerated innovation, new products and newer services, and an ever-increasing potential for scale and speed spell opportunities but also necessitate adaptation.
The most challenging aspect will be skill upgradation and learning newer ones. Along with technological dexterity, the workforce will need to be equipped with social, emotional and cognitive skills, among others. Digital competency will soon acquire an altogether different meaning. A range of professions will have no choice but to imbibe advanced competencies when it comes to digital know-how.
AI will play a very significant role in the near future — already AI tools are transforming the workplace, the education sector, the services sector, the world of medicine, and so forth. Regardless of the ethical conundrums of the use of AI, the fact is that advanced algorithms have already taken form and will only become more and more widespread in the coming years. That is going to be a significant development, and a lot will depend on the context in which it plays out. And as the technology gets better and better, learning opportunities will also crop up.
With changing times, learning new skills and knowing how to benefit from new opportunities will make all the difference when it comes to succeeding in work environments. As for the MENA region, it is known to embrace technology in all its hues. In fact, some nations, notably UAE, are ahead of the rest of the world in deploying new technologies. In view of the future-forward stance of the region, one can safely predict that it will be among the first to adopt emerging technologies and benefit from the learning opportunities.
