The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), part of the Egyptian Ministry of Communications, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ). Under the agreement, the two organisations will focus on enhancing collaboration in job promotion and creation in Egypt's offshoring sector and integrating industry 4.0 digital technologies in the local electronics manufacturing industry, an ITIDA statement read. ITIDA CEO Ahmed El Zaher and Country Director of GIZ Egypt, Alexander Solyga have signed the MoU. The MoU paves the way for joint initiatives and efforts by ITIDA and GIZ to develop Egypt's IT sector, and positively impact the sector through creating job opportunities in both the outsourcing industry and technology innovation. ITIDA and GIZ aim at supporting industry 4.0 development and transition to Egypt, increasing Egyptian companies' competitiveness, and developing the electronics industry being one of the key props for growth in the Egyptian economy. A number of local and foreign companies operating in the Egyptian market attended the signing ceremony. There was also a round table held for local and foreign companies specialising in the IT outsourcing and global business services to discuss the available growth opportunities, potential partnerships, and means to enhance their operations to help them expand their global delivery centres in the North African country. Signing of the MoU marks an important step in the constructive cooperation between Egypt and Germany in the IT sector, ITIDA's Ahmed El Zaher said. El Zaher added that the MoU comes in line with ITIDA's strategic goals and endeavours to drive growth and strengthen Egypt's global position as a reliable offshoring hub for IT and business services, with great potential in the high-end, value-added services and electronics industry. "Egypt enjoys a pool of highly skilled talent and multilingual tech professionals specialized in various fields of IT. Egypt is thus capable of meeting the needs of the European market that is currently facing a shortfall in tech talent and a high cost of operations." El Zaher said. "ITIDA is keen on developing the digital and technical skills of youth and matching them with local and international companies specialized in the field of information technology." The MoU will see ITIDA, and GIZ working together on developing a training programme to create about 1,200 job opportunities targeting graduates and university students and matching them with companies from private sector partners in the IT sector to fulfill their hiring needs and skills requirements. The programme will include training in the German language, business skills, and soft skills. The MoU reflects GIZ's commitment "to fostering employability and promoting digitalisation in Egypt's rapidly growing IT sector." Alexander Solyga said. "Through this collaboration, we aim to create new job opportunities, and contribute to the development of a knowledge-based economy. "This will help us to empower youth, women, entrepreneurs, and SMEs, further diversifying and strengthening the Egyptian economy. We look forward to a successful partnership with ITIDA." Solyga concluded. The two organisations will work closely to strengthen the offshoring activities in both Egypt and Germany, in addition to the European Union at large by attracting more German companies to establish global delivery centres in Egypt. They will work jointly on promoting digitalisation in Egypt through training programmes and support for at least 50 Egyptian companies to enhance job creation and employment. The focus of joint activities is set to be on two pilot clusters –the industry 4.0 Innovation Centre in the Knowledge City and the Innovation Cluster at Borg El Arab City. The activities incorporate training, assessment programmes, expert guidance, events, and partnerships with recognised international related entities for enabling manufacturers in the digital transformation journey. ITIDA and GIZ will also hold a number of hackathons and competitions for startups and entrepreneurs in order to provide creative solutions that tackle industrial challenges. Both entities will also launch incubation programmes for innovative startups, provide business development networking, and support the participation of Egyptian companies in international exhibitions. Officials from the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) after signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) under which the two organisations will focus on enhancing collaboration in job promotion and creation in Egypt's offshoring sector and integrating industry 4.0 digital technologies in the local electronics manufacturing industry.
