- As Part of a Partnership Combining Economic Empowerment with Heritage Preservation
Cairo, Egypt, 25 September 2026: Emirates NBD - Egypt has signed a cooperation protocol with the Egyptian Foundation for Integrated Development El Nidaa to support a project aimed at reviving and developing pottery, as well as heritage and traditional handicrafts. The initiative will provide women in Upper Egypt with new training, production, and employment opportunities, while safeguarding a craft that forms an integral part of Egypt's cultural identity.
This cooperation reflects both parties' commitment to driving socio-economic development by linking economic empowerment with the preservation of heritage crafts. The partnership provides an integrated framework that begins by enhancing the skills of women beneficiaries and improving product quality, then extends to support production and marketing. This approach enhances local market access and paves the way for future export expansion.
The project focuses on training and upskilling 50 women beneficiaries to improve pottery production and product quality, build their marketing capabilities, and prepare them to access export markets. The partnership also includes supplying raw materials and production supplies, maintaining and replacing equipment, funding training programs, and providing beneficiaries with new production tools and equipment to improve product quality and increase output capacity.
The project goes beyond training and skill-building by directly linking development to tangible production and marketing opportunities, supporting beneficiaries' ability to generate sustainable income. The collaboration also includes purchasing the beneficiaries' handcrafted products, strengthening the project's sustainability and providing a direct marketing channel in the local market.
In this context, Dr. Amgad Doma, Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer at Emirates NBD – Egypt, stated: "We believe that the true impact of corporate social responsibility begins when initiatives are transformed into sustainable economic opportunities that empower individuals and support communities. Through this partnership, we are economically empowering women through training, production, and connecting their skills to real market opportunities, while simultaneously preserving the craft of pottery as an authentic component of Egyptian heritage and identity. We aim for the outcomes of this project to reach local families and communities by creating more sustainable income streams and enhancing women's ability to build a better economic future."
For his part, Dr. Waleed Brekaa, Executive Director of the Egyptian Foundation for Integrated Development El Nidaa, emphasized that this cooperation marks an important step in advancing the foundation's economic empowerment programs. He explained that the project provides an integrated model that goes beyond training to include production development, quality improvement, and real marketing opportunities, thereby strengthening women's ability to generate sustainable income from their skills.
The project falls under the Women's Social and Economic Empowerment Program implemented by the foundation, which aims to provide decent job opportunities for women in rural villages across Upper Egypt with a particular focus on Qena Governorate, and to support their ability to establish sustainable sources of income.
Dina El Beltagy, Director of Marketing and Corporate Communication at the Egyptian Foundation for Integrated Development El Nidaa, said the project reflects the foundation's direction to develop heritage crafts and turn them into scalable economic opportunities. She noted that developing women's production and marketing skills is essential to enabling them to access new markets and enhance their competitiveness.
This partnership underscores the commitment of Emirates NBD – Egypt and the Egyptian Foundation for Integrated Development El Nidaa to supporting local development initiatives that combine economic empowerment, heritage preservation, and sustainable job creation, thereby contributing to enhanced income streams and improved living standards for women, their families, and local communities across Upper Egypt.
UAE
