CAIRO, July 11, 2018 - President Abdel Fattah El Sisi Tuesday confirmed the importance of the role being played by the Ministry of Youth and Sports in encouraging the country's young people to be more creative and helping them participate, not only in the decision-making process, but also in Egypt's development. During his meeting with the Prime Minister, Dr Moustafa Madbouli, and the Minister of Youth and Sports, Dr Ashraf Sobhi, President Sisi called for providing young people, whom he called the main manpower and human capital of the country, with the kind of empowering environment that would help them meet Egypt's future requirements. President Sisi said that the government must mobilise all its efforts to implement all the projects aimed at upgrading the quality of services that were being offered to Egyptian youth, whom he described as the most solid resource base, with an important role to play in building the country's future. He said that the government must continue building and equipping sports centres for the young people in each newly-built city. During the meeting, President Sisi and Minister Sobhi reviewed plans for a set of social, cultural, and sports compounds that would be built to serve young people and to qualify Egypt to host international sports events either now or in the future, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said. President Sisi issued instructions to the government to upgrade the Cairo Stadium and its surroundings, in preparation for hosting international sports events. He highlighted the importance of training the sports men and women who would represent Egypt at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo and the importance of thoroughly preparing for the Handball Championship that would be hosted by Egypt in 2021, Ambassador Radi said. Earlier in the day, President Sisi thanked the young Egyptian sports men and women for the good results they had achieved at the Mediterranean Games 2018 that were held in Tarragona, Spain, recently. To express his appreciation, President Sisi received the athletes at the Presidential Palace and praised them for gladdening the hearts of all Egyptians with their success at the games. The president told the team members that he appreciated each one of them and held them in high esteem for their honourable performance. He added that they had earned the respect and appreciation of all Egyptians and of sports fans all over the world, according to the spokesman for the presidency. The president confirmed that the dedication and loyalty to their country demonstrated by the athletes would enable them to achieve more success at future championships. At the end of the meeting, President Sisi awarded state medals, second class, to the men and women champion athletes who had distinguished themselves at the Mediterranean Games. They won medals in weight-lifting, karate, swimming, free wrestling, athletics, taekwondo, judo, table tennis, and boxing.
