Italy's Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said Tuesday a new partnership to build 89 applied technology schools in Egypt will play a central role in reshaping the country's technical workforce and deepening economic ties between the two Mediterranean nations. Speaking in Cairo at a signing ceremony attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly, Valditara called the initiative a "critical step" in implementing a 2024 cooperation framework and expanding Italy's footprint in Egypt's vocational training sector. The schools will focus on industry-linked disciplines including mechatronics, textiles, healthcare, agriculture and food processing — priority sectors for Egypt as it seeks to attract investment and modernize its labor market. Valditara said the programme mirrors Italy's "4+2" technical education model, which combines secondary schooling with two years of hands-on training through the ITS Academy network. The approach tightly integrates companies into the curriculum, with industry specialists teaching and mentoring students. Italy has also invested in AI-enabled labs, testing facilities and soft-skills programs, part of what Valditara described as a broader bid to align talent development with employer needs. He said bringing Italian management and technical experience into Egyptian training systems would help position the country's young workforce for future growth. Valditara praised Egypt's expanding Italian-language instruction and said he expects the agreement to anchor a "long-term, sustainable partnership" between the two countries. Egypt and Italy signed a series of cooperation protocols to establish 89 applied technology schools nationwide, part of a broader push to upgrade technical education and better align training with the needs of modern industries. The accords bring together the Ministry of Education and Technical Education, multiple Egyptian ministries and local partners — including Ezz Steel, the Future of Egypt for Sustainable Development Authority, and the Arab Organisation for Industrialisation — alongside several leading Italian academies and institutes such as ENGIM San Paolo, ITS G. Caputo, ITS Agro Academy, ITS Nuove Tecnologie della Vita, and the Danieli Foundation. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English
