Tunis, Tunisia, August 7, 2012—
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has signed an agreement with the Tunisian Engineering University ESPRIT to help strengthen the employability of graduating students, part of IFC’s efforts to improve youth employability in Tunisia.
Through the agreement ESPRIT will adapt and deliver IFC’s Business Edge training program, which will strengthen the business and soft skills of final-year undergraduate engineering students. This will complement the set of services ESPRIT offers to help students enter the workforce. ESPRIT will also utilize Business Edge modules to enhance the performance of engineers already working in smaller businesses through its continuing education center.
“Our joint effort with IFC will help us provide skilled workers to fulfill the current demands of the market,” said Tahar Ben Lakhdar, ESPRIT CEO.
Antoine Courcelle-Labrousse, IFC Country Manager for Tunisia, said, “Fostering private sector growth and generating employment are top priorities for IFC in Tunisia. To achieve this, it is important to help Tunisian youth acquire the right skills, both technical and managerial, for the jobs being created.”
Business Edge has been used by over 140,000 people around the world, including 59,000 in the Middle East and North Africa. The agreement with ESPRIT is part of IFC’s effort to combat youth unemployment in Tunisia, which reached 30 percent in 2011.
The project is part of the e4e Initiative for Arab Youth, which is a joint effort by IFC and the Islamic Development Bank. The program aims to develop a common approach to working with the private sector to enhance education options and entrepreneurship opportunities for youth in the Middle East and North Africa.
The region has one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the world, estimated at 25%. That costs the economy an estimated $40 billion to $50 billion annually.
About IFC:
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. We help developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, mobilizing capital in international financial markets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments. In FY12, our investments reached an all-time high of more than $20 billion, leveraging the power of the private sector to create jobs, spark innovation, and tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
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About ESPRIT (Ecole Supérieure Privée d’Ingénierie et de Technologie):
Founded in 2003 by engineers, university teachers, innovative IT companies and financial institutions, ESPRIT is devoted to developing the next generation of Tunisia’s operational engineers. For more information, please visit
www.esprit.tn
.
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