In a sunlit auditorium at the National Telecommunications Institute (NTI) in Cairo, hundreds of students tap away at laptops, building their first machine learning models. It’s part of a government-backed summer internship that has grown exponentially in size and ambition. Just a few years ago, it trained a few hundred students. This summer, it will train over 10,000.

It’s not a one-off. The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), Egypt’s executive tech development arm under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), has been tasked with something bigger: to help train over 500,000 professionals by 2025 in advanced digital fields, including artificial intelligence, cloud computing, data analytics, and cybersecurity.

This figure is not symbolic. It reflects Egypt’s fast-moving strategy to establish itself as a global hub for digital talent. At its heart is a talent-led vision: a national push to transform a traditionally under-leveraged labor force into a cornerstone of Egypt’s growing digital economy.

A National Skills Machine

Egypt produces an estimated 760,000 university graduates annually, including 50,000 in information and communication technology (ICT) and over 170,000 in finance and accounting, with 28% in STEM disciplines. These numbers are significant — not just in scale, but in structure. A high proportion of graduates are multilingual, fluent in Arabic, English, French, and increasingly German or Spanish, making them an attractive workforce for international firms.

To harness this potential, Egypt has launched a suite of workforce development programs aimed at both foundational and cutting-edge skills. At the core is the revamped Summer Internship Program, launched by ITIDA in partnership with NTI and Motorola Solutions’ distributor Systel.

This year’s edition offers eight specialized training tracks — from cybersecurity and UI/UX design to AI and digital marketing — delivered both online and at state-backed “Digital Egypt” hubs across the country. The internship comprises 120 hours of training, including a strong emphasis on soft skills and workplace readiness.

Students also receive discounts of up to 70% on internationally recognized certification exams, giving them a competitive edge in the global job market. Applications are currently ongoing. 

Private Sector as Partner, Not Passenger

Public-private collaboration is central to Egypt’s strategy. While government agencies provide infrastructure and coordination, companies like Systel are offering fully funded technical training in advanced telecom technologies — fiber optics, public safety networks, and satellite systems. This year, 250 students will undergo hands-on training with Systel, part of the company’s social responsibility initiatives.

These partnerships aren’t symbolic — they’re strategic. According to ITIDA, programs like these help align academic knowledge with real labor market needs, particularly in fast-evolving fields like AI and cloud computing.

Deloitte, Intelcia, IBM, and Siemens have all recently expanded their operations in Egypt. Deloitte alone committed $30 million to launch an AI and cybersecurity innovation hub in Cairo, aiming to scale its workforce from 350 to 5,000 specialists. Moroccan outsourcing giant Intelcia, meanwhile, has doubled its revenues in Egypt in under two years and now plans to grow its headcount to 4,000 by 2026.

“The future of outsourcing is not just about cost — it’s about skill,” said Intelcia CEO Karim Bernoussi at the opening of its new regional HQ in Sheikh Zayed. “Egypt is where we’re betting on both.”

The payoff is starting to show. In the fiscal year 2022–2023, Egypt’s IT-enabled services sector grew by 54.2%, reaching $3.7 billion in exports. The government projects that figure to rise to $9 billion by 2026 and $13 billion by 2030.

In Kearney’s 2023 Global Services Location Index, Egypt ranked 23rd out of 78 countries, buoyed by its talent pipeline, strategic location, and expanding digital infrastructure.

A Window of Opportunity

For Egypt, the window to scale digital capacity is now. As global demand for AI engineers and cloud architects accelerates, many countries face a shortage of trained workers. Egypt is attempting to fill that gap — not only for its own economy, but for the global tech industry.

The success of that ambition will rest on more than classroom hours. It will depend on execution, policy stability, and continued investment in both infrastructure and people.

But if early signals are any indication, Egypt’s bet on talent is already attracting the right kind of attention — and capital.

“This isn’t just about exporting services,” said CIT Minister Amr Talaat at a recent conference. “It’s about exporting talent, innovation, and a new generation of digital leaders.”

And if Egypt’s training machine continues at its current pace, that export may soon become one of its most valuable.