Egyptian International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr has asserted Egypt's keenness on supporting youth participation and empowering them at the economic and social levels in the development process.

Addressing a high-level international meeting on engaging youth in development efforts in the Kenyan capital Nairobi on Thursday, the minister said young people are the real wealth to depend on in the development process. 
The meeting is held on the sidelines of the second high-level meeting (HLM2) of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC), currently taking place in Nairobi. 

The minister pointed out to her ministry plans for providing finances to youth programs to support them economically and socially, saying the ministry provided 1 billion dollars for technical education and youth projects.

For her part, the Dutch minister of international cooperation voiced support for the Egyptian minister's plans on empowering young people and activating their role. 

Representatives of 100 countries and organizations concerned with international development are also taking part in the event. 

Nasr had shed light on development efforts in Egypt to help limited income brackets, espcially through creating jobs and providing funds for small, medium and micro-sized projects. 

She also posted the participants on efforts to upgrade the infrastructure in industrial zones. 

The International Partnership Development agreed unanimously on the Egyptian minister's request to draw up a mechanism to engage youth in the development process which came within the framework of President Abdel Fattah el Sisi's inititiaive before youth conference in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El Sheikh in October declaring 2016 the year of the youth.

Hosted by the Government of Kenya, the HLM2 aims to amplify the positive impact of development cooperation over the next 15 years and will:

-Take stock of the implementation of development effectiveness principles and commitments
- Provide a learning space on development effectiveness, showcasing successful examples
- Identify innovative approaches to sustainable development that can be scaled up
- Position the Global Partnership to effectively contribute to implementation of the SDGs and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda

Participants in the meeting are discussing current problems and future possibilities to enhance the effectiveness in global development cooperation within their set principles.