Gov't gives priority to medium, micro enterprises

International Cooperation Minister Sahr Nasr underlined Saturday that the government gives priority to the medium and micro enterprises, adding that growth can not be achieved except via the participation of all the brackets of the society.

This remark came on the sidelines of the activities of day two of the second montly national youth conference.

The ministry carried out an accurate survey with the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) to get acquainted with the challenges facing each governorate and to support these enterprises via associations and banks, she stressed.

Nasr said also that the ministry backs the enterprises through the international financial associations and encouraged investors also to support them.

The ministry posted the international financial institutions on Egyptian success stories, the minister underscored, noting that the cabinet aims at improving the livelihood of the Egyptian citizen.

She further highlighted the approval of the parliament a few days ago to develop Upper Egypt with 500 million dollars.

The success axes include the economic reform program which is carried out along with the social reform program, Nasr reiterated, adding that reform programs aim at maintaining sustainable comprehensive growth which means that all brackets of the society can reap the fruits of reform.

The minister affirmed that the government focused in 2016 on the infrastructure projects such as roads, sanitation, electricity grids and social housing ventures because the cabinet targets offering an environment that can attract investors and the private sector.

The government will focus in 2017 on improving the livelihood of youth in the Upper Egyptian governorates by paying attention to education, health and social security networks.

Providing job opportunities for youth is one of the main aims of the reform program, Nasr said, thus the cabinet supports the micro, small and medium enterprises and targets honing the skills of youth who constitute about 40 percent of the society.

Such enterprises represent a main source for providing job opportunities, the minister mentioned, noting that it offers 80 percent of job opportunities in the non-agricultural private sector and 40 percent of the total opportunities.

Aiming at overcoming the obstacles facing the small and medium enterprises in Egypt, the International Cooperation Ministry saved no effort to provide funding for the enterprises in partnership with donor entities such as the World Bank which offered 600 million dollars, the US Agency for International Development as well as the Saudi Fund For Development, Nasr affirmed.