On June 10^th AICS Cairo staff participated to the graduate ceremony of pioneering mothers from the "Integrated Development Classes" organized during the last quarter and attended by a total number of 713 woman. An average number of 100-120 women will attend the celebration and will be awarded a package containing a fan and some feasibility materials of the program, out of which 20 women will be honored with a certificate of appreciation.  This activity is part of the Program “Rights of Minors and the Family Empowerment in the Fayoum Governorate” . The Programme aims to establish an integrated model of development in the Governorate of Fayoum, whose data, information and evidence can be used by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) for the identification and formulation of appropriate strategies to implement the National Action Plan (NAP) for children at the local level. The Programme has two components (central and local) and promotes a “bottom - up” approach. At the local level (Fayoum Governorate), the Programme envisages an empowerment action to improve the socio-economic conditions of selected families and reduce practices and phenomena such as female genital mutilations, child marriages, school drop-out, child labour, non-registration at birth, and maternal and infant malnutrition. Micro-credits to selected families are included among the activities. At the central level, the experience gained will give rise to indications and guidelines to be taken into account by NCCM when implementing the NAP in other parts of the country. Furthermore, NCCM, with the support of the programme, will refine its capacity to monitor and evaluate ongoing projects dedicated to the protection and promotion of children's rights, as well as its institutional ability to formulate and elaborate local action plans, in coordination with other relevant ministries (Social Solidarity, Health and Population, Education, Interior, Local Development).

Cairo - On 7 May 2018 UNIDO signed a cooperation protocol with the Industrial Modernization Center of Egypt at the Creative Hubs’s first Strategic Stakeholders Event. H.E Ambassador Ivan Surkoš, Head of the European Union Delegation to Egypt, H.E Mr. Giampaolo Cantini, the Italian Ambassador to Egypt, and Dr. Dalia Salem, Senior Assistant to the Minister of Trade and Industry gave keynote addresses.

During the event, Mrs. Giovanna Ceigle, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Representative and Director of Regional Office in Egypt, and Mr. Ahmed Taha, Industrial Modernization Center (IMC) Executive Director signed a Letter of Intent between the two institutions, formalizing UNIDO’s and IMC’s partnership and commitment to foster creativity as a source of sustainable economic development and job creation.

Egypt's innovative designers had the opportunity to present a number of success stories and ideas that would contribute to inclusive and sustainable industrial development.

Creative Hub Egypt is an outcome of Creative Mediterranean, a regional project supported by Union for Mediterranean, funded by the European Union with a contribution from the Italian Cooperation, and implemented by UNIDO. By promoting dialogue between decision makers and entrepreneurs, this networking event was considered important milestone to discuss tailor-made policies and programs positioning creativity and design as a competitive advantage for Egyptian industries.

Creative Hub Egypt supports creative innovators, designers and SMEs in various fields by deepening understanding of global design and industrial concepts, enhancing the link between young innovators and industrial and governmental entities, as well as promoting cultural awareness.

Creative Hub Egypt was inaugurated in November 2017 by H.E Eng. Tareq Qabil, Minister of Trade and Industry as a platform for creative services provision, and as a tool to foster innovation, entrepreneurship and integration of Egyptian youth to economic activities. The hub offers wide range of services to designers and innovative entrepreneurs mainly to reinforce creativity in the industrial arena, through vast technical and business capacity building programs, product development workshops, co-working spaces, B2B networking, advisory services, and prototyping machinery available; shedding light on the strategic importance and potential of the design-based industries.

Creative Mediterranean, a project funded by the European Union with a contribution of the Italian Cooperation, supported by the Union for Mediterranean and implemented by UNIDO, fosters entrepreneurial co-operation in cultural and creative industries of the Southern Mediterranean. The aim of the project is to demonstrate the creative potential in the region and to put creativity at the center of local economic development by supporting access to new markets and employment opportunities in 13 clusters of the creative sector.

Kafr el Sheikh - In the framework of the project “Creating a protective environment for vulnerable adolescents in governorates with high risks of irregular migration and child trafficking” funded by the Italian Cooperation and implemented by UNICEF, on April 17 and 18 AICS staff paid a field visit to different urban and rural areas in Cairo and Egypt’s Delta where vulnerable Egyptian and non-Egyptian communities are based.

Skills development training and psycho-social support for adolescents, as well as positive parenting sessions with parents and awareness raising activities on the risks associated with irregular migration are the main activities implemented by UNICEF Egypt, in collaboration with Ngo Terre des Hommes and local partners.

Among several beneficiaries of the project, AICS staff met children living in a Family Center in Gamasa, a village in the Dakahleya governorate with a high number of Syrian families.