Souq.com Egypt, Egypt’s largest e-commerce platform, has announced plans to establish a new crop of e-commerce startups, which will join the country’s burgeoning e-commerce industry within the next three months.

About 86 young Egyptian entrepreneurs are scheduled to join the E-Commerce Entrepreneurship Program in August for an eight-week training course that aims to equip them with the skills and know-how needed to launch their own e-commerce ventures.

“Egypt is a country that is home to a massive population and internet penetration rate of 44 per cent. Of those 39 million internet users, 9 percent, or 3.58 million, are transacting online,” remarked Omar Elsahy, the general manager at Souq.com Egypt.

“This means that Egypt is ripe for a burst of e-commerce growth in the coming years, and programs such as our E-Commerce Development Program are what are needed to drive the industry and help it reach its potential,” he noted.

The industry’s high potential for growth is clear, as the country is home to a large generation of young online purchasers that will facilitate the growth of e-commerce in Egypt.

According to Payfort’s recent “Arab World Online Payment Report 2014,” over 65 per cent of the Egyptian population is under the age of 40, and nearly 85 per cent of all e-commerce transactions are made by the 18-to-40 age bracket.

This telling statistic suggests that Egypt has the consumer base needed for its burgeoning e-commerce industry to continue to grow.

Last week, the E-Commerce Entrepreneurship Program, which is organized in partnership with Education for Employment Egypt (EFE|Egypt) and supported by the US-Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), celebrated the graduation of its inaugural class of entrepreneurs with the launch of three new e-commerce startups.

Additionally, as part of its wider E-commerce Development Project, Souq.com Egypt will provide a “Marketplace Incubator,” which will serve as another device for boosting the success of the young entrepreneurs’ ventures by offering development programs and access to expert mentorship and shared services.

 Successful program graduates have the opportunity to further hone their entrepreneurial skills by participating in a six-month apprenticeship with the Souq.com Egypt platform, where they will become trusted sellers.

Given Souq.com Egypt’s position as the country’s leading e-commerce platform, this is a unique opportunity as the young entrepreneurs will gain instant access the platform’s massive user base and will benefit from the ease and security that Souq.com provides its sellers.

“Via programs and initiatives such as the E-Commerce Development Program, Souq.com Egypt is committed to helping Egypt reach its e-commerce potential,” said Elsahy.

“By facilitating the industry’s growth, we will be able to contribute to the national economy and create more jobs for our promising younger generation, thus alleviating many of the challenges that Egypt currently faces,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service