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Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris has signed on to a new partnership that aims to train 100,000 young people in Egypt for the job market and connect at least 10,000 of them to employment, backers said Tuesday.
The initiative, called Jusur Al Foras, or Bridges of Opportunity, was announced by the Digital School and the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development at a closing event in Lagos, Nigeria. It is supported by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, a major UAE philanthropic umbrella organization that funds education and humanitarian programs across the region.
Sawiris, founder of Orascom Investment Holding and founder and vice chairman of the Sawiris Foundation, signed the partnership agreement alongside Omar Sultan Al Olama, the UAE minister of state for artificial intelligence and remote work applications and chairman of the Digital School’s board, and Saeed Al Eter, chief executive of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives.
Organizers said the program is designed to close a familiar gap in the region: training that does not lead to real jobs. Jusur Al Foras is built around what partners described as a skills to jobs model, linking learning pathways directly to hiring needs and treating job placement as a core outcome, not an afterthought.
The Digital School, which operates under the UAE initiatives group, and Shaghalni, an online recruitment platform, will implement the program. Digital School will lead training through its Skills Academies, offering structured courses intended to match labor market demand. Shaghalni will analyze hiring trends in Egypt, build partnerships with employers and help match graduates to open roles.
Al Olama said the initiative is meant to give young people practical skills that improve their chances of finding work and building stability in their communities. Al Eter said the partnership reflects a broader effort to unite philanthropic resources behind scalable programs with measurable outcomes, especially for young people facing tighter labor markets.
Sawiris said job creation has been a central pillar of his foundation’s work and framed the partnership as part of a wider push to rethink how employment support is delivered. He said traditional approaches are no longer enough in fast changing economies and argued that training must be built around data driven methods and real employer demand.
Backers said the program will rely on flexible, tech enabled learning, including digital and blended formats, to reach participants regardless of location, social background or previous educational qualifications. They described it as an attempt to widen access to upskilling beyond major cities.
The Digital School launched in 2020 and focuses on remote and blended learning for underserved communities, including using artificial intelligence tools to tailor learning plans. The organization says its programs have reached hundreds of thousands of learners across dozens of countries and are offered in multiple languages.
The Sawiris Foundation for Social Development, established in 2001 with funding from the Sawiris family, supports projects focused on poverty reduction, employment and access to quality education in Egypt, with particular emphasis on marginalized communities.
Partners said Jusur Al Foras is jointly funded by the UAE initiatives group and the Sawiris Foundation, and they expect the first training tracks and employer engagements to roll out through 2026 as they work toward the 100,000 trainee target and the 10,000 job connection goal.
