Quarter 3 Report: USAID/Egypt Workforce Improvement and Skill Enhancement Project: Year 5

This report describes the activities of the third quarter of Project Year 5 covering the period from May 1, 2020 through July 31, 2020. WISE supports and collaborates with a variety of public and private sector entities as it provides training and capacity building for stakeholders and counterparts through three result areas: Result A focuses on upgrading technical secondary education to meet the needs of the market in selected governorates and sectors; Result B focuses on improving skills and productivity within the workforce and private sector in selected sectors and governorates; and Result C focuses on supporting an enabling environment for improved labor market efficiency. Across more than five years of project implementation, strong and mutually beneficial relationships with a variety of stakeholders have been at the core of WISE's success. Critical WISE partners in the Government of Egypt include the Ministry of Education and Technical Education (MoETE), the Ministry of Local Development (MoLD), the Ministry of Social Solidarity (MoSS), and the Ministry of Trade and Industry's Productivity and Vocational Training Department (PVTD). WISE has also developed essential Egyptian partners outside of the government at both the national and governorate levels. Result A: Upgrading Technical Secondary Education, aimed to improve schools' capacity to provide students with technical, practical, entrepreneurial, innovation, and soft skills needed by the market to enhance employability. Objective A.1 focused on schools' capacity improvement, with 15 schools in the governorates of Alexandria and Gharbia achieving 100% compliance with the required standards. Objective A.2 involved the development and implementation of curricula that meet international standards and address market needs, with 12 schools in the governorates of Cairo and Giza successfully piloting the new curricula. Result B: Enhancing Productive Capacity and Ability to Attract and Retain Skilled Employees, aimed to improve the skills and productivity of the workforce and private sector in selected sectors and governorates. Objective B.2 focused on upgrading the technical, practical, and soft skills of selected job seekers and linking them to the private sector for employment, with 500 job seekers in the governorates of Alexandria and Gharbia receiving training and placement services. Objective B.3 aimed to improve the productivity of the existing labor force, with 20 firms in the governorates of Cairo and Giza participating in the Productivity Improvement Program. Result C: Enhancing the Capacity of Egyptian Stakeholders to Identify and Address Barriers to Labor Market Efficiency, aimed to support an enabling environment for improved labor market efficiency. Objective C.2 focused on assisting selected organizations in developing strategies to advocate for reforms related to labor market efficiency, with 10 organizations in the governorates of Alexandria and Gharbia participating in the Enabling Environment Advisory Group.