Ayady Company for Investment and Development was launched Tuesday by Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb and the Ministers of Planning, International Cooperation, Education, Higher Education, Social Solidarity and Youth. Minister of Planning Ashraf El-Araby said that Ayady aims to use the energies of young Egyptians to meet the urgent development needs nationwide. Under the slogan of "Let's work", Ayady will create 500,000 job opportunities in the field of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The company has been founded with an initial capital of EGP 10bn, of which 20% is a government contribution and 80% is from the private sector. El-Araby said that Ayady will be activated in coordination with the Federation of Egyptian Industries, Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce and the Egyptian Junior Businessmen Association. Ayady is initiated as a cooperation between Ministries of Planning and Local Development and under the auspices of Ministries of Industry, Investment, Endowment and Youth and Sports. Egypt's youth are facing major challenges, as the unemployment rate registered 13.3% during the second quarter (Q2) of 2014. This figure compares to 13.4% during Q1, the Central Agency of Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) stated in August. Unemployment recorded 9% during the same quarter in 2010, the statistics agency added. CAPMAS also reported in August that approximately 27.8% of Egyptian youth live in poverty, while 24.1% live near the poverty line. The figure is a minimal increase compared to last year, where poverty and near-poverty among youth registered 51.3%.
