The Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat has witnessed the signing of a cooperation protocol between the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) and Arish University, as part of ongoing efforts to train and qualify youth across North Sinai Governorate in ICTs. The cooperation aims to enhance their capabilities in securing decent ICT employment opportunities.
The agreement was signed by CEO of ITIDA Ahmed Elzaher and President of Arish University Hassan El Demerdash, in the presence of senior officials from the two sides.
In his remarks, the ICT Minister emphasized that the cooperation agreement aims to deliver training programs to equip youth in North Sinai to work as freelancers within the ICT sector, thus opening up broad employment prospects with companies within Egypt and abroad without requiring relocation. He noted that the agreement also aims to support youth in realizing their entrepreneurial ambitions and establishing IT startups.
The ICT Minister also underlined the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology's commitment to providing the necessary support to empower the University in carrying out its developmental role in North Sinai.
This agreement marks a renewal of the previous cooperation agreement signed by the two parties in 2022. The new three-year agreement aims to qualify approximately 7,200 trainees, including students from Arish University and youth from North Sinai, by implementing a variety of specialized training programs offered to students of the Faculty of Computers and Information at Arish University and youth across the governorate.
The programs tailored for students of the Faculty of Computers and Information at Arish University cover areas such as the Summer Internships Program in cooperation with the National Telecommunication Institute (NTI), the Graduation Projects Support program, English language proficiency courses, and freelancing skills development programs.
Meanwhile, the programs targeting youth of North Sinai focus on essential digital skills, cybersecurity principles, English language proficiency, soft skills development, and training in freelancing and entrepreneurship. The goal is to boost youth employability and equip them to thrive in the digital labor market, whether through conventional employment or freelance platforms.
The agreement also includes preparing certified trainers from the governorate in ICTs, in collaboration with ITIDA and NTI, contributing to the sustainability of local digital capacity-building efforts.
For his part, El Demerdash highlighted the University's robust societal and developmental role in North Sinai, particularly in youth empowerment. He pointed out that the renewed agreement features an expanded number of beneficiaries and a variety of training programs that align with labor market needs while broadening the target individuals to include different age groups.
El Demerdash praised MCIT's efforts in driving tech advancement nationwide. He also commended the role of Creativa Innovation Hub, established by the Ministry within the University, in promoting community development across the governorate.
Elzaher praised the fruitful cooperation over the past two years, which played an effective role in the success of development initiatives. He noted that the first phase of the collaboration resulted in training more than 2,200 youth from North Sinai, surpassing the initial targets. He underscored that the cooperation agreement between ITIDA and Arish University reflects their dedication to equipping youth with the essential skills required by the IT labor market, contributing to achieving development goals in Sinai.
