Egypt's Investment and International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr and Higher Education Minister Khaled Abdul-Ghaffar on Tuesday signed a cooperation protocol which aims to support university students in the field of startup businesses under the Fekretak Sherketak ("Your Idea is Your Company") initiative, according to a statement from the Investment Ministry. Under the Sherketak initiative, which was initially launched in September as a partnership between the government, private sector and civil society, the investment ministry will connect entrepreneurs to government bodies which will offer them consutancy services and training sessions. Tuesday's agreement stipulates that the Ministry of Higher Education, in turn, will encourage university students to work in startups and to take advantage of the support offered by the initiative, which includes technical training and financing in fields such as information technology. The startup support program is expected to have a social and environmental impact, and to generate an investment return through partnerships with financial institutions, according to the statement. The Investment Ministry is working on offering a convenient investment climate for youth startups and to provide them with technical and financial support through the initiative, according to Minister Nasr. The initiative also aims at preparing the youth for the needs of the job market and offering them job opportunities, Minister Abdul-Ghaffar added.
