International Youth Day in Egypt

CAIRO –14 August 2018: The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is partnering with UNICEF and the Ministry of Youth and Sports to promote youth employment and female empowerment in celebration of International Youth Day.

The USAID aims to support efforts that would provide young adults with key life skills in terms of employability and entrepreneurial skills in Minya, Assiut, Sohag and Qena.

As a way to empower the youth and combat issues such as female genital mutilation (FGM), the USAID is taking part in building a cadre of professional guidance counselors from the Ministry of Youth and Sports as part of the “Meshwary” project.

According to UNICEF, the “Meshwary” project deals with lacking career opportunities that young adults face in Egypt. The project eventually grew to accommodate the youth in urban slums, Assuit, Sohag and Sharkeya by focusing on skills development and sharing, career guidance and work placement.

“Through the ‘Meshwary’ project, we are equipping the next generation of Egyptian youth with the skills they need to be successful in the labor market – and in life,” said the USAID Egypt Mission Director Sherry F. Carlin at the International Youth Day event.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said on Sunday that the youth of Egypt are the title of the current stage in Egypt and the priority of the country, according to Al-Masry Al-Youm.

“The world celebrates #InternationalYouthDay once every year while #Egypt celebrates its youth every day. Since the President’s announcement of 2016 as the year of the Youth, their empowerment has become the nation’s priority. Egypt’s future lies in rising its generation,” said Abu Zeid on twitter.

During the Sixth National Youth Conference, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi named the year 2019 as the year of education, thus making education a top priority for the development of Egyptian youth.