Prof. Dr. Mamdouh Ghorab, Governor of Al-Sharkia, confirmed that the Economic Social Council, the Egypt Workforce Project, and the Local Economic Development Program affiliated with the Ministry of Local Development represent a real force of support for Al-Sharkia Governorate in confronting the challenges faced by owners of medium, small, and micro enterprises and providing the necessary solutions for them to provide direct and indirect job opportunities and improve income level, which is reflected in the increase in the governorate’s domestic product this came while he chaired a meeting of the governorate’s economic and social council to review the strategy of the small, medium and micro enterprises sector and handicrafts and heritage in the governorate, in the presence of Dr. Ahmed Abdel Muti and Engineer Lubni Abdel Aziz, the two deputy governors, Engineer Sami Mujil, Assistant Secretary General of the governorate, and Prof. Dr. Nahid Mustafa, the national expert for strategic planning and resource development. Human and Engineer Mohamed El-Nassag, the national expert in the field of fish farming, Mr. Angie Lotfy, a senior economist and project manager at the US Agency for International Development, Dr. Joseph Ghanem, Director of the Labor Force Egypt Project, Mr. Mohamed Fawzi, Deputy Director of the Labor Force Egypt Project, and Dr. El-Sayed Turki, Director of Labor Market Environment Development Programs. Dr. Sherine Al-Sabbagh, Director of the Project to Support Transformation in Project Performance funded by the United States Agency for International Development, and their accompanying delegation, representatives of the United States Agency for International Development and its affiliated projects, and members of the Economic and Social Council.

The governor appreciated the role of the Ministry of Local Development in providing permanent support to the people of the governorate by providing suitable job opportunities for them through the “Your Project” program of the Ministry of Local Development, which was able to provide 19 thousand and 194 projects at a cost of 3 billion and 211 million and 163 pounds to provide 56 thousand and 273 job opportunities for the people of the governorate, in addition to launching a number Among other projects, such as the Strong Worker Egypt project, which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development.

Governor of Al-Sharkia said that the governorate is a miniature model of the Arab Republic of Egypt, with all its challenges and cultures that require change through cooperation between partner agencies to reach the best. The Governor of the Eastern Province explained that the Medium, Small and Micro Enterprise Development Agency in the Eastern Governorate, during the period from 9/1/2018 to 3/31/2024, provided loans worth 2 billion, 81 million and 438 thousand to finance 69,370 projects to provide 129,018 job opportunities for the people of the governorate.

Governor of Al-Sharkia added that we need to change the prevailing culture among young people, especially in technical education schools, and expose students to the latest methods of local and international manufacturing and production so that they are ready to engage in self-employment experiences and compete with the global market with Egyptian products, in accordance with the requirements of the labor market and to graduate a generation capable of contributing to building and developing society.

For his part, Dr. Joseph Ghanem, Director of the Strong Worker Egypt Project, extended his thanks and appreciation to the Governor of Sharkia and the work team in charge of conducting the economic survey for their distinguished role and fruitful cooperation with the representatives of the Strong Worker Egypt Project and the United States Agency for International Development in conducting the economic survey of the governorate with all accuracy to determine priority development programs and projects in the governorate.

While Dr. Nahed Mostafa, the national expert for strategic planning and human resources development, explained that the economic survey for the governorate was conducted to complete the strategic plan for Al-Sharkia Governorate (2019-2023) and achieve Egypt’s vision for sustainable development 2030 in its three economic, social and environmental dimensions, as well as updating databases for various economic sectors / policy making / preparation Economic development programs and plans, in addition to maximizing added value, achieving economic integration between different sectors, providing decent job opportunities for members of the governorate, and increasing the governorate’s contribution to the domestic product of the Suez Canal Region/Egypt.

The national expert for strategic planning and human resources development added that the governorate was keen to develop a strategy for industry, projects and handicrafts by identifying the challenges facing investors and developing urgent solutions for them, which led to an increase in existing factories from 1,200 factories to 1,350 factories, an increase in production lines, and a decrease in the number of troubled factories from 34. To 15 factories, in addition to increasing the number of requests from factories whose owners wish to improve their situations and come under the umbrella of the state, in addition to providing various projects for female breadwinners that help them cope with the burdens of life. While Dr. Hossam Younis, Economic Development Consultant, reviewed the strategy for the medium, small and micro enterprise sector in Sharkia Governorate (2024-2030) and the strategic objectives that contribute to increasing the governorate’s gross domestic product, in addition to increasing exports of small and medium enterprise products and services, as well as creating new job opportunities for citizens, especially youth and women, in addition to increasing the number of technology and innovation projects.

The meeting touched on Dr. Al-Sayyid Turki, labor market policy consultant, reviewing the most prominent internal and external challenges facing medium, small and micro enterprises and the amount of effort and work expended within Al-Sharkia Governorate to complete the economic survey in the sectors concerned. At the end of the meeting, the door for dialogue was opened to answer the attendees’ inquiries and learn about proposals and visions to maximize the benefit from the economic survey and encourage medium, small and micro industries.