FOR THE THIRD year running, Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) kicks off in Egypt today. The gathering aims to bolster awareness of entrepreneurship and self-employment among youth, help explore their potential for innovation and start their own business projects. Coordinated by Egypt's Middle East Council for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (MCSBE), along with 33 government and non-government partners, GEW ends on 10 November. Around 65 activities will be held, offering entrepreneurship education and assistance to young Egyptians. Among the events is a two-day entrepreneurship expo at which entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to showcase their products and share their ideas, while service providers will be able to display their services. "GEW is a good opportunity for us to attract young entrepreneurs," Omar Soudodi, general manager of Souq.com, told Al-Ahram Weekly. Soudodi's firm is a leading online shopping website and one of GEW's active partners this year. He added that there is no better opportunity for young people to share their business ideas and find the assistance they need. Ashraf El-Gazayerli, chairman of the Egyptian Junior Business Association (EJB), said the week will also feature a competition for the best project ideas. The contest will be held in training centres set up in five universities across the country to qualify students for the workplace. The entrepreneurship week-long series of activities include showcasing some entrepreneurial success stories, sessions on developing personal skills, defining funding opportunities for projects, exhibiting international product designs and promoting entrepreneurs' ideas. GEW is being held under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology and the Ministry of Higher Education. Other event coordinators include the General Authority for Investment, the Industrial Modernisation Centre, the EJB and the Social Fund for Development (SFD). Minister of Trade and Industry, Rachid Mohamed Rachid, mentioned lack of awareness, finance, good project-development environment and daring self-employment mentality as main obstacles facing entrepreneurship in Egypt. "Young people should be encouraged to initiate their own enterprise without fearing failure," Rachid noted, adding that entrepreneurship is a vital part of economic growth. "Small and Medium Enterprises [SMEs] are the backbone of the national economy [as they represent more than 80 per cent of the Egyptian economy]," said Osama Saleh, GAFI chairman, who promised that there will be a unit within a period of eight months specialising in assisting entrepreneurs all over Egypt to start their projects. GEW is a worldwide annual initiative which emerged in 2008 with the participation of 100 countries.
