The World Bank group has launched its human capital investment plan for 2019 in MENA and North Africa, with a total fund of $1.119 billion. The announcement was made on Thursday on the sidelines of the WB and International Monetary Fund annual meetings, held in Washington. The plan, according to Egypt's Investment Ministry, contains a number of key pillars, including investing in school students in early edges, improving education results, and protecting the human capital for weaker categories, such as women and the poor by merging them into the formal economy. It also covers building youth capabilities, benefiting from digital economy solutions, supporting entrepreneurship, and boosting efficient spending and subsidies rationalisation. The WB revealed that Egypt was among the 68 countries which have inked the human capital investment plan, which is in line with thee government's priorities, adding that Egypt embarked on implementing President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi initiative for investing in human capital through the new health insurance system. The WB said it will raise its financing for the human capital investment programmes in MENA and North Africa to $2.5 billion by 2024. Egypt's Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr, who attended the announcement event, said Egypt's economic programme succeeded in developing human capital, as Egypt's economic growth rate hit 7.5 percent, which is the highest in the region. Nasr stressed that Egypt's President Sisi prioritised attracting human capital investments, especially in the education and healthcare sectors. She said the investment law, that was recently amended, guaranteed equal opportunities for youth and women to benefit from their abilities in building the Egyptian economy, in addition to the “Your Idea, Your Enterprise” initiative that the ministry launched to empower entrepreneurs receiving financial and technical support for their innovative ideas and to elevate their business growth. Source: Ahram Online
