silatech & mowgli provide training to support egyptian microenterprise

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UK Charity Number: 1127087

Silatech, Mowgli Provide Training to Support Egyptian Microenterprise

Mentorship training for loan officers builds the capacity of the Egyptian microfinance industry to offer

dedicated support to young micro-entrepreneurs.

June 02, 2013: Silatech and the Mowgli Foundation have partnered with the Alexandria Business

Association (ABA) and the Egyptian Microfinance Network (EMFN) to offer specialized mentorship

training in Alexandria and Cairo for loan officers working in Egyptian microfinance institutions.

As the primary point of contact between microfinance institutions and micro-entrepreneurs, properly-

trained loan officers can play a significant role in providing mentoring support for young

entrepreneurs, thereby increasing their chances of success and growth. All too often, however,

credit officers do not have the necessary training to carry out these roles.

Silatech is a Qatar-based social initiative that works to create jobs and expand economic

opportunities for young people throughout the Arab world. Mowgli is an award winning, UK-

headquartered mentoring organisation which offers mentoring programs that inspire, connect and

guide entrepreneurs to enable them to fulfill their personal and business potential.

From May 5-7, Mowgli provided a specialized “train the trainer” mentorship program to eight

specially selected loan officers from the Alexandria Business Association’s Micro and Small

Enterprise Project. During May 8-12, these eight officers trained 32 other loan officers in the

mentorship program, which was supervised by Mowgli. Based on this internal capacity, ABA now

plans to train all of its 700 loan officers, who in turn will provide mentoring support to thousands of

microenterprise clients as they seek to grow their businesses.

During May 14-15, Mowgli provided additional mentorship training in Cairo to over 20 staff from nine

member institutions of the Egyptian Microfinance Network. Mowgli mentorship training provides

participants with deeper knowledge of the principles of mentoring, common issues experienced by

young entrepreneurs, and equips them with necessary skills required to manage them. They also

receive grounding in the core skills of listening, communicating effectively and self-awareness.

According to the World Bank, each year around 600,000 young people enter the Egyptian labor

market, but only about 250,000 of these are able to find jobs. The result is that millions of young

Egyptians are forced to start their own very small—or “micro”—enterprises. For many of these






micro-entrepreneurs, the only thing standing between subsistence incomes and thriving small

businesses is reliable, affordable capital and appropriate business guidance.

With projects in 11 Arab countries, since 2009 Silatech microenterprise partnerships have fully

financed over 30,000 businesses and provided assistance to over 190,000 young people. Silatech is

the largest provider of youth-focused microenterprise services in the Middle East and North Africa.

Speaking of the impact of the training, Alexandria Business Association CEO, Motaz Tabaa

highlighted that; “This mentoring program was a truly unique experience that gave our credit officers

a deeper understanding of the needs of micro-entrepreneurs.” In further comments, he mentioned

that, “Mentoring is at the core of a transformational process that will enable us to develop new

models of support to grow microenterprises into thriving small businesses.”

For his part, Hamed Mohamed Hamed, Executive Director of the Egyptian Microfinance Network,

stated that; “This training was an outstanding program that has given us a fresh new perspective

and the tools to connect with and support entrepreneurs in new and deeper ways. We are excited

about the new possibilities that this will have in our work with young entrepreneurs.”

According to Silatech CEO Dr. Tarik M. Yousef; “This training is intended to help bring a paradigm

shift for loan officers, elevating their role from merely providing financial support to their clients—in

the form of loans—to offering them a more holistic set of support services including mentoring. We

are proud to be able to work with Mowgli to provide training programs for the Alexandria Business

Association and the Egyptian Microfinance Network, strengthening our support for young micro-

entrepreneurs throughout Egypt.”

Helen Al Uzaizi, Mowgli’s Chief Executive Officer said; “Following the success of our pilot programs

last year, we are thrilled to be back in Egypt running our mentor training and train the trainer

programs. This will not only enable us to reach more entrepreneurs but also to further place

mentorship at the heart of supporting Egypt’s entrepreneurship ecosystem.”

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About the Mowgli Foundation:

The Mowgli Foundation is an award winning, UK-headquartered mentoring organisation, established

in 2008 by successful serial entrepreneur Tony Bury, in response to the need for job creation and

sustainable economic and societal development in the MENA region as well as in UK communities.

Mowgli provides mentoring that inspires, connects and guides entrepreneurs and leaders to

overcome life's personal and business challenges through:

• Interactive, experiential and transformational 'Kickstart' workshops

• A unique environment for accelerated relationship building, mentor training and matching

• Engagement within a learning and mentoring focused global alumni network

Mowgli has matched 270+ entrepreneurs in 8 countries with trained mentors, who voluntarily support

them throughout a 1-year program, and were recognised in Dec 2012 with the Mohammed bin

Rashid Award for Young Business Leaders Award for the ‘Best Mentor Network in the Arab Region’.

CONTACT DETAILS

Mowgli Media Contact: Kathleen Bury, [email protected]

Mowgli UK Office: CAN Mezzanine, Hanover House, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol BS1 4EX, UK

Tel: +44 (0) 1172 020137 | Website: http://www.mowgli.org.uk

Mowgli Foundation Registered Charity Number: 1127087

About Silatech

Silatech is a Qatar-based social initiative that works to create jobs and expand economic

opportunities for young people throughout the Arab world. The organization promotes large-scale

job creation, entrepreneurship, access to capital and markets, and the participation and engagement

of young people in economic and social development. Founded in 2008 by Her Highness Sheikha

Moza bint Nasser, Silatech finds innovative solutions to challenging problems, working with a wide

spectrum of development organizations, governments and the private sector to foster sustainable,

positive change for Arab youth. For more information on Silatech, see www.silatech.com.