The Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat and Governor of Fayoum Ahmed Al-Ansari have witnessed the launch of the e-platform of the National Network for Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Services “Taheel” in Fayoum Governorate at its general bureau.
 
This came as part of the ICT Minister’s visit to Fayoum to open and inspect the projects implemented by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) under the Decent Life initiative in villages in Fayoum.
 
The Network has the slogan: Ability is revealed through your difference. It was launched in Fayoum as the first Egyptian governorate with access to the Network services to support PwDs and help them find decent job opportunities that meet their abilities.
 
Earlier in his visit, Talaat opened the Qalhana post office after it was optimized to deliver financial, postal, and governmental services. The ICT Minister also opened El-Gon and Tamiya Main Post Offices and inspected Telecom Egypt’s fiber optic cable project in the village of Qalhana. In addition, he attended part of a digital and financial awareness session, organized for citizens in the same village, within the framework of Decent Life.
 
In his remarks, Talaat underlined that Fayoum is one of the promising governorates where human resources and investment opportunities are abundant. He explained that MCIT is undertaking numerous projects in cooperation with the Governorate. These include upgrading the ICT infrastructure, supporting digital transformation, promoting human development by integrating and empowering PwDs, and establishing the CREATIVA Innovation Hub at Fayoum University, which is scheduled to open at the end of this year.
 
The ICT Minister added that MCIT and Fayoum Governorate collaborate to carry out projects in villages under the Decent Life initiative. Decent Life is an unparalleled mega project, undertaken by all state agencies collectively to modernize the Egyptian countryside, Talaat highlighted.
 
MCIT role in the first phase of the initiative stands on four main pillars. The first entails providing Fiber to the Home (FTTH) Internet services for people in villages to help them acquire knowledge, since the government realizes the significance of having high-speed Internet as a key pillar to ensuring citizens live a Decent Life. The second pillar is reengineering post offices in terms of structure and purpose to deliver financial and governmental services. This is in addition to developing logistics services to promote e-commerce and create business opportunities for small manufacturers.
 
The third pillar focuses on improving the quality of mobile phone services by expanding network coverage through new cell sites. The fourth pillar is promoting human development through initiatives and training programs where ICT is harnessed to help people find jobs and access digital services.
 
For her part, the Head of the Central Department for Digital Community Development at MCIT Hoda Dahroug revealed that MCIT launched the National Network for PWD Services in cooperation with the Ministry of Social Solidarity to complement the national efforts toward empowering and integrating PwDs through ICT. This step is part of the government plan to build the Egyptian citizen and Digital Egypt by making rehabilitation and training services available on a wide scale and creating more job opportunities. This is achieved through an online recruitment portal and mobile application that link PwDs, employers, and agencies providing training, rehabilitation, and employment services.
 
In coordination with Fayoum Governorate and the Directorate of Social Solidarity, MCIT holds workshops and sessions to introduce PwDs, employers, and relevant civil society organizations to the jobs and rehabilitation, training, and employment services offered by different agencies in Fayoum through the Network.
 
Talaat and Al-Ansari visited the construction site of CREATIVA Innovation Hub at Fayoum University. The Hub is being established by the Armed Forces Engineering Authority and in collaboration between MCIT and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research as part of phase II of the CREATIVA Innovation Hubs project. The project is aimed at creating a nationwide environment conducive to technological innovation and a talent pool capable of bolstering and boosting the ICT industry.
 
The Director of the National Telecommunication Institute (NTI) Iman Ashour and the Chairwoman of the Information Technology Institute (ITI) Heba Saleh received the Minister and the Governor.