Egypt and France sign an agreement to empower women with the support the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (UN Women)

On the sidelines of French President François Holland's visit to Egypt, an agreement of collaboration was signed yesterday evening between Egypt and France with the support of UN Women and the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development to launch the program "The Egyptian Woman: Pioneer of the Future". The agreement was signed in special celebration at the residence of the French Ambassador in Cairo attended by the Ambassador of France to Egypt Andre Parant, UN Women Regional Director for Arab States Mohammad Naciri, and the Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris.

The agreement brings together the largest French companies and banks in Egypt and the Middle East to collaborate side-by-side with the Egyptian government and civil society to build the capacity and employment skills of women to be employed by those companies. Mr. Naciri emphasized in his statement "the agreement that was signed today combines the efforts of the government, civil society, and the private sector, which is the most effective collaboration that guarantees the sustainable economic empowerment of women on the ground". It is the first agreement of many similar agreements planned to be launched with the support of UN Women in several Arab states including Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria in efforts to strengthen the economic support of women in the Middle East.