The global network gear, Cisco, this month announced that it is investing $10m in Egypt. This is a five year investment in its efforts towards building strong and healthier global communities. The announced was made in a press release on Cisco website, dated June 02, 2011.
This investment will go towards job creation and economic development in Egypt. The most fascinating aspect of this investment is the model – a venture capital investment targeted at small businesses that provide innovative products, services and solutions. They will also play a role in facilitating investment in Egypt by building collaborations with local, regional and international institutions.
Key highlights of this investment are as follows
- Businesses across Egypt are recognizing the need to invest in ICT for new opportunities and growth. While ICT investment in Egypt continues to grow, essentially doubling between 2001 and 2010, ICT penetration still remains low. However, the deregulation of the telecom sector, the dramatic expansion of technology use by the younger generation, and continued investment will accelerate usage in the country.
- Cisco is actively working throughout the Middle East and North Africa to support job creation and economic growth by building ICT skills and talent within the workforce as well as providing greater access to capital and to educational opportunities. Developing and addressing the growing skills gap, as well as creating entrepreneurs and leaders of the future, is at the forefront of Cisco’s mission for the MENA region. Cisco has several initiatives in the region to facilitate this, including the Cisco® Networking Academy® and the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute.
- There are currently 333 Cisco Networking Academies in Egypt with 655 instructors and a total of 18,716 students of which 43% are women. The program has trained almost 45,827 students since inception.