The world of work is changing faster than ever. For young people, preparing for a successful career now requires more than academic qualifications. It requires practical skills, a clear understanding of the labour market, continuous learning, and the ability to turn knowledge into real value.
This belief has been at the heart of Eng. Mahmoud Salah’s vision, Chairman of Horizon Group: investing in young people and preparing them for the future is an essential part of building stronger businesses, industries, and communities.
For Horizon, this vision has never been limited to words. Over the years, it has translated into practical initiatives focused on youth training, skills development, and workforce readiness, helping young people better understand the realities of the workplace and prepare for their professional journeys.
As part of this ongoing commitment, Horizon Group, represented by its training arm, Horizon Academy, was honoured to participate in the “Ready for the Future – Ready for Tomorrow” event, organised by the El Reyada Association for Development in cooperation with Borg El Arab Technological University.
The event was held as part of the “Youth Integration and Employment – Ready for Tomorrow” project, implemented by El Reyada Association for Development in partnership with Plan International Egypt and funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Connecting Young People with the Real World of Work
The event created an important space for young people to engage directly with experts, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and representatives of companies and institutions.
Rather than focusing only on theoretical discussions, the event encouraged open conversations about career development, entrepreneurship, employment opportunities, and the changing needs of the labour market.
For students approaching graduation, these conversations can provide a different perspective on what comes after university. They help connect academic learning with the practical expectations of employers and highlight the skills young professionals need to develop before entering the workforce.
Creating this connection between education and employment is an important part of improving youth employability and workforce readiness.
Bringing Industry Experience to Young Professionals
During the event, Eng. Mahmoud Salah took part in a discussion with students alongside a number of entrepreneurs, sharing insights from his experience in business and industry.
The discussion explored several areas that are particularly relevant to young people preparing to enter the labour market, including how to make the most of available opportunities, the skills and qualities employers look for when selecting young talent, the importance of self-development and continuous learning, and the fundamentals of business and entrepreneurship.
A key message from the discussion was that professional readiness does not begin after graduation or when a young person receives their first job offer.
It starts much earlier.
Students can begin preparing for their careers by developing practical skills, understanding how businesses operate, learning how to communicate and solve problems, and continuously expanding their knowledge beyond the classroom.
Academic knowledge provides a foundation, but its real value comes from the ability to apply it.
Knowledge becomes a skill.
A skill becomes performance.
And performance creates value.
A Vision That Became Horizon Academy in 2021
Horizon’s participation in this initiative is part of a broader vision that began years ago: young people should have access to meaningful professional development before they graduate, not only after they enter the workforce.
In 2021, this vision took a practical form with the launch of Horizon Academy, the training arm of Horizon Group.
Since its establishment, Horizon Academy has focused on delivering specialised training programmes across different sectors and professional disciplines, with an emphasis on technical knowledge, practical skills, and continuous professional development.
In just a few years, Horizon Academy has trained and graduated more than 12,000 trainees across different sectors and specialisations.
This growing community of trainees reflects Horizon’s continued commitment to industrial training and skills development, particularly in areas connected to the needs of the industrial sector.
The objective has never been simply to help participants obtain a certificate. The broader goal is to help them develop knowledge and practical capabilities that they can apply throughout their careers.
Building Bridges Between Education and Employment
The “Ready for the Future – Ready for Tomorrow” event also highlighted the value of collaboration between educational institutions, civil society organisations, the private sector, and industry professionals.
The initiative was organised by El Reyada Association for Development, in cooperation with Borg El Arab Technological University, as part of the “Youth Integration and Employment – Ready for Tomorrow” project, in partnership with Plan International Egypt and funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Under the leadership of Ms. Omayma El Sheikh, Chairwoman of El Reyada Association for Development, the event brought together young people and professionals to create opportunities for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and direct exposure to the labour market.
At the conclusion of the event, the association honoured a number of speakers, participants, guests, partners, supporters, and members of the organising team in recognition of their contributions to the success of the event.
The recognition reflected an important principle: creating meaningful impact in the lives of young people is not the responsibility of one organisation alone.
It requires collaboration.
Education provides knowledge.
Industry provides experience.
Training develops skills.
And partnerships create opportunities.
Together, these elements can help young people make a stronger transition from education to employment, entrepreneurship, and economic participation.
Investing in Young People Means Investing in Industry
At Horizon, we believe that the future of industry is not built by technology, equipment, and resources alone.
It is built by people.
The engineers, technicians, entrepreneurs, professionals, and young talents who will shape the next generation of businesses and industries need opportunities to learn, develop, experiment, and connect with real-world experience.
That is why youth empowerment, workforce readiness, and professional training remain an important part of Horizon’s broader vision.
From the launch of Horizon Academy in 2021 to training more than 12,000 participants, and from specialised industrial training to direct engagement with university students and young professionals, the direction remains consistent:
Preparing young people for the future starts before graduation.
And at Horizon, we believe that investing in young people is investing in the future of industry.