MSMEDA allocates L.E. 76 million for youth training in 11 governorates with EU Funds

Sunday, April 4, 2021, Minister of Trade and Industry and MSMEDA Executive Director Ms. Nevine Gamea announced that MSMEDA is coordinating efforts with different State Agencies to offer youth adequate and appropriate alternatives to fight the phenomena of irregular migration indicating that the MSMEDA is currently implementing training programs for youth in 11 governorates with special emphases on Upper Egypt under a financing Agreement to addressing the Root Causes of Irregular Migration funded by the EU. MS. Gamea added that such training programs assist youth to develop and acquire new skills based on market needs and encourage them to start new small enterprises. This statement came in the event of signing of 4 contracts between MSMEDA and 4 NGOs from Minya governorate activating the agreement to address the Root Causes of Irregular Migration funded by the EU.
MSMEDA Deputy Executive Director Eng. Tarek Shash witnessed the signature whereas Eng. Medhat Massoud, Head of Human and Community Development Central Sector at MSMEDA signed the contracts with the Heads of 4 NGOs board of directors with a total amount of L.E. 7 million.
MSMEDA Deputy Executive Director Eng. Tarek Shash said that more than one thousand youth from Deir Moas and Malawy districts in Menya governorate will benefit from the training programs in entrepreneurship awareness, handicrafts, carpentry, surveillance camera installation and maintenance, photocopying, wall painting, waste recycling, and leather manufacturing. He added that these programs have been developed based on market needs and requirements adding that it is planned that 600 job opportunities would be established for the youth after successfully completing the training.
Meanwhile, Head of Human and Community Development Central Sector at MSMEDA Eng. Massoud said that these training programs would target youth in the age group from (18 – 29) to assist them in developing their skills to obtain better and decent jobs, hence achieving economic empowerment. He added that these training programs are implemented under the third component of the Agreement to address the Root Causes of Irregular Migration funded by the EU to train youth on handicraft skills to fulfill market demands.
The Agreement of Addressing the Root Causes of Irregular Migration through Employability and Labor-intensive Works (ELIW) was signed between MSMEDA and the EU in the form of a grant with a total amount of EUR 27 million. The targeting and selection of participating governorates was done according to the results of the study done by the National Coordinating Committee on Preventing Illegal Migration and Combatting and Preventing Trafficking in Persons with aim of implementing labor intensive infrastructure and community development projects in 11 governorates namely: Luxor, Assiut, Minya, Fayoum, Qualubia, Menufia, Gharbia, Sharqia, Beheira, Daqahlia and kafr El Sheikh.