The meeting took place as part of the activities in the second edition of the “Startup Day” organized virtually by the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) through its Center for Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIEC).
Minister of Communications and Information Technology (CIT) Amrit Talat met with a group of founders of reputed startups working in CIT fields on Tuesday.

The meeting was attended by Acting ITIDA CEO Amar Mahfooz; Hosam Othman, Advisor to the Minister of Communications for Technology Innovation, Electronics Industry and Training; And several young startup founders.

Talat said that Egypt has achieved positive results in the startup sector. During the first half of 2020, the country has maintained its leading Middle East and Africa (MEA) sector position to attract the largest number of investment deals in the emerging companies sector. It also ranks second in terms of investment volume in the MEA sector.

Talat also said that his ministry has made significant efforts towards helping startups achieve sustainable growth, particularly in the provision of digital skills.

The Ministry of CIT has also been involved in providing long-term focused training programs, which provide more intensive expertise in various technical areas.

He highlighted the most important of these initiatives set up by the ministry. This includes the “Our Future … Digital” initiative, which aims to train 100,000 youth in data science, electronic marketing and website development. Initiatives have been taken to enhance competitive capabilities in the free labor market.
It has also participated in preparing the workforce required by emerging companies in Egypt, by launching a series of initiatives according to a hierarchical approach. It was based on providing training programs that required very little time to build a broad base of digital skills

The ministry has also supported the “500-500” initiative, which aims to train 500 youths in data science and artificial intelligence (AI) in nine months.

This comes in addition to an initiative run in collaboration with Chinese technology firm Huawei, which provides training to 10,000 young Egyptians in various CIT fields. During the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, there have been joint initiatives through virtual laboratories.

The ministry has collaborated with the French School of Engineering and Computer Science (EPITA) to provide training to 200 trainees in AI techniques.

The “Digital Egypt Builders” initiative, which began in February, aims to provide a 12-month training program for 1,000 graduates of Egyptian faculties and engineering sciences. During the program, trainees will undergo intensive training in the CIT specialization to obtain a master’s degree, in addition to a package of advanced and necessary project management skills.

At the meeting, the young founders of emerging startups reviewed their entrepreneurial experiences in various CIT disciplines. He also outlined the most important challenges and obstacles affecting the growth of emerging companies, and resolved their proposals. This included creating a legislative environment, and providing them with faster Internet-equipped space at a cheaper cost by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.

He also urged that the ministry make itself available as a link with many relevant ministries and bodies to facilitate the work of startups.