Electromobility places
new demands on employees

In Egypt, too, there is a trend towards electric vehicles, fuel-efficient trucks and environmentally friendly painting techniques

Egyptian cities and especially the Cairo agglomeration suffer from massive car traffic. With the growing population, the number of vehicles is constantly increasing. The poor air quality is a burden on health, and CO2 emissions are going up. But a market for electric vehicles is also developing in Egypt, and the demand for commercial vehicles with more efficient combustion engines is increasing. The government is promoting the establishment of EV manufacturers and has started to build up a charging infrastructure. Soon, the first electric vehicles assembled in Egypt should be on the country's roads.

The transformation in drive technologies and the need for more environmentally friendly forms of production are leading to completely new requirements for car mechanics. The content taught in the current training programmes does not adequately qualify prospective mechanics for the maintenance and repair of electric vehicles. This slows down the mobility transition and prevents investments in the new technologies. In addition, many paint shops work with outdated techniques and thus emit an unnecessary amount of pollutants. Modern work processes could significantly reduce the burden on the environment and the workers, but this will require skilled workers that are appropriately trained.

Trainings for the jobs of tomorrow

The Ghabbour Auto Group is one of the most important players in the Egyptian automotive industry. It emerged from a family business founded over 60 years ago. Today, its activities include the import and export of vehicles, the assembly and sale of passenger cars, commercial vehicles and motorbikes, and the trade in spare parts.

To help shape the mobility revolution, the Ghabbour Auto Group wants to train its existing employees as well as skilled workers that are still to be hired in the maintenance of EVs and modern commercial vehicles. In addition, environmentally friendly painting techniques are to be used to a greater extent than before. This new training programme is being developed for this purpose.

The two consortium partners involved in this project, the Ghabbour Foundation for Development and ITAMCO, are closely linked to the Ghabbour Auto Group. The Ghabbour Foundation develops vocational training programmes in the automotive sector that are closely aligned with the needs of the Egyptian labour market and works with international companies to implement them. ITAMCO is a company specialising in the import and trade of cars, motorbikes, and commercial vehicles.

The consortium successfully applied for a grant from the Facility Investing for Employment with the project of a training programme for the maintenance of EVs and commercial vehicles as well as modern painting techniques. It is expected to benefit the Ghabbour Auto Group companies as well as Egypt's mobility sector as a whole.

The comprehensive training programme will be carried out at two state vocational schools in Cairo and at an existing ITAMCO training academy. For this purpose, dedicated high-tech training workshops will be set up during the investment phase of three years. Close links to the automotive industry and dual training elements will ensure that the qualifications meet the needs of future employers.

500 new jobs are to be created

Young people studying at one of the Ghabbour Foundation's vocational schools, as well as engineers and mechanics who are already in employment, are to take part in the trainings. Within three years, more than 700 people are expected to undergo the training. Of the graduates, the Ghabbour Auto Group will take on 100, about a quarter of whom will be women, and 375 more are expected to find employment with other companies in the automotive sector. In addition to this, the consortium has agreed to qualify and employ 25 trainers. Participants in the training who are already employed are expected to benefit from improved working conditions after completing their training, as they will have qualified for higher-paid jobs and will also have learned how to use painting techniques that are less hazardous to their health.

The consortium plans to invest a total of 1.34 million euros. The Facility Investing for Employment grants a subsidy of 1 million euros (75 %). The IFE funds will be used to finance part of the construction costs, equipment for the training workshops, safety equipment, and a training of trainers for EV maintenance carried out by the car manufacturer Hyundai. In this way, new jobs are to be created in an industry of the future. 

The Facility Investing for Employment (IFE) of KfW Development Bank is part of the Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition" of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). With its support, the Facility wants to remove barriers that prevent the creation of new and better jobs in the private sector in the African partner countries.