A project aiming to create employment opportunities and to increase the income of a total of 6,500 young men and women was launched this week in rural Aswan, Egypt.
The Youth Employment in Aswan Governorate project was officially launched by partners, the Embassy of Switzerland’s Office for International Cooperation, CARE International and WorldFish under the auspices of the Governor of Aswan, Mr. Moustafa Yousry.
The 3-year CHF 5 million project will foster entrepreneurship and focus on high growth value chains in horticulture, livestock, and fisheries.
“With this project, we want to foster innovative entrepreneurs among the youth in Aswan. We want to support the development of high-value products and improved value chains in the areas of livestock, fish and horticulture, to create employment opportunities and to improve livelihoods in the region”, said Markus Leitner, the Ambassador of Switzerland in Egypt.
“CARE and WorldFish are building on a successful partnership focused on development of the Egyptian aquaculture value chain, also supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)”, explained WorldFish Country Manager, Dr Gamal El-Naggar. “In the new project, WorldFish will concentrate on three main activities; improving fisheries management in Lake Nasser, increasing employment in and the value of fish processing and introducing aquaculture to the Governorate”, Dr El-Naggar added.
“Our strategy is to increase marketing opportunities and collaborate with private sector, civil society and the Egyptian Government,” said Dr. Hazem Fahmy, Country Director at CARE International in Egypt. “We will work together to create a new social enterprise foundation, one that has a social mission achieved through a private sector mindset, and promote entrepreneurship in Aswan”, he added.
Aswan currently has one of the highest unemployment rates in Upper Egypt. In the wake of Egypt’s 2011 uprising, governorates that were heavily reliant on tourism, such as Aswan, suffered economic hardships, further exacerbating the persistent unemployment problem.
About the Office for International Cooperation, Embassy of Switzerland in Egypt
Switzerland has been a long-standing partner of Egypt, mainly in the domain of economic development. Following the 2011 uprising, Switzerland decided to upscale its support to Egypt in order to help Egypt’s transition towards a democracy. A framework agreement between Switzerland and Egypt was ratified in November 2013 to outline this bilateral cooperation. Several Swiss Governmental agencies are involved, such as the Swiss Development and Cooperation Agency, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and the Human Security Division. The program focuses on three domains: Democratic transition and human rights; migration and protection; and economic development and employment.
About CARE International in Egypt
CARE Egypt is part of CARE International, one of the largest international NGOs present in 90 countries, and has been serving over 83 million people around the world. CARE has been serving communities and local associations in the poorest regions of Egypt since 1954. CARE began work in Egypt with a nationwide school-feeding program. Today, CARE's work is focused primarily on Upper Egypt, where it works closely through a rights-based approach with the poor and marginalized, civil society and government institutions to improve livelihoods on a sustainable basis. In addition to its headquarters located in Cairo, the organization has field offices operating in five governorates; Assuit, Beni Suef, El- Minya, Sohag, and Qena. CARE Egypt works in four main development areas; women’s rights, girl’s education, agriculture and natural resources, and good governance through local participatory processes. CARE Egypt is strongly committed to the mobilization of different development stakeholders, including local communities, NGOs, academic and research institutions, governmental entities and the corporate sector.
About WorldFish
WorldFish is an international, nonprofit research organization that harnesses the potential of fisheries and aquaculture to reduce hunger and poverty. Globally, more than 1 billion poor people obtain most of their animal protein from fish and 800 million depend on fisheries and aquaculture for their livelihoods. WorldFish is a member of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future.
About CGIAR
CGIAR is a global research partnership for a food-secure future. Its science is carried out by the 15 research Centers that are members of the CGIAR Consortium in collaboration with hundreds of partners.
For more information or to request for interview:
Toby Johnson, Senior Media Relations Manager. Phone: +60 175 124 606. Email: t.johnson@cgiar.org
The Embassy of Switzerland in Egypt
Sally Yacoub, Senior National Programme Officer, Office for International Cooperation. Phone: +20 2 2795 1536 or +20 2 2794 3638.
Shaimaa Fayed, Communications Officer. Mobile: 01009119619.
CARE International in Egypt
Samir Sedky, Agricultural and Natural Resources Program Director. Phone: +2 02 252 60096 or +2 02 252 63373 extension: 267.