English 
Professor Dr. Abdelaziz Konsowa, President of Alexandria University, attended today, Saturday, the 2nd of November 2024, the opening session of the Youth Visions Salon in its fifth edition at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. The salon was held under the title "Egyptian Youth... Egypt's Support: Effectiveness and Influence in Light of Current Challenges.” The event was attended by Dr. Ashraf Sobhi, Minister of Youth and Sports, Lieutenant General Ahmed Khaled, Governor of Alexandria, Dr. Jacqueline Azer, Governor of Beheira, Ambassador Nabila Makram, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of “Fahem Foundation for Psychological Support”, Dr. Ahmed Zayed, Director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Dr. Ali Abdelmohsen, Acting Vice President of the University for Education and Student Affairs, Representative Dina El-Hilali, Member of the Senate and Founder of the Youth Visions Salon, and a group of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, civil society institutions and youth entities from various Egyptian governorates.
In his speech, Dr. Ashraf Sobhi thanked MP Dina El-Hilali for establishing the idea of the Youth Visions Salon, stressing that the salon aims to achieve rapprochement between youth and executives in the state, and is one of the real opportunities to enable youth to participate in discussing contemporary societal issues and presenting their visions for addressing them through discussions with officials and specialized experts and addressing all the challenges facing the Egyptian state. He noted that the Ministry of Youth and Sports is the big house for Egyptian youth to listen to their ideas and creativity, in addition to organizing the global youth forums held by the Egyptian state over the past ten years and establishing the Youth Coordination of Parties and Politicians, which enabled many young people to hold many political and important positions in the Egyptian state.
Dr. Sobhi stressed that the ministry is working under the directives of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of the Republic, to put all its capabilities to achieve comprehensive empowerment of youth in various economic, social, cultural, political, sports and developmental aspects through implementing many youth meetings.
Lieutenant General Ahmed Khaled stressed that Egyptian youth represent the strength of Egyptian society and are considered the main pillar in the progress and construction of every society, because they carry within them potential and creativity, noting that when Egyptian youth take an opportunity in any field, they can express themselves and give a wonderful model for their country. He added that Alexandria Governorate has many challenges, stressing that the Egyptian state is working to integrate efforts between various institutions as this is the basic criterion for success. He also stressed the need for coordination between Alexandria Governorate and Alexandria University to adopt youth ideas to serve the Alexandrian community.
Dr. Abdelaziz Konsowa stressed that youth are the present and all the future, and that the youth stage is characterized by creation, creativity and innovation, so these energies must be optimally exploited, stressing that the new republic, led by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, aims to build a knowledge society by launching the "Beginning to Build the Egyptian Person" initiative and establishing a knowledge economy by building a competitive educational system and encouraging scientific research, innovation and creativity and creating the appropriate environment of legislation to adopt emerging and creative ideas for youth. In this context, Dr. Konsowa launched an initiative to embrace emerging research and creative ideas of Alexandria University students and researchers and fund it with 30 million Egyptian pounds through the Technology Park at Alexandria University to adopt these ideas and bring them to light.
While Dr. Ahmed Zayed, Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, confirmed that the Bibliotheca always places youth at the centre of attention, because Egyptian youth have tremendous capabilities for innovation and creativity, and they represent the largest population bloc in Egyptian society. He added that youth are a real storehouse of capabilities in many fields, and we must believe in their capabilities and aspirations, pointing out that Egyptian youth inspire hope and the gap between different generations must be bridged.
While Parliament Member Dina Hilali confirmed that the Youth Visions Salon is an important dialogue platform for Egyptian youth, because youth are one of the main poles of the new republic to contribute to correcting the image and enhancing awareness among Egyptian youth of the current situation, in addition to that it contributes to building bridges of dialogue with youth in various governorates, enhancing opportunities to listen to their visions and ideas that support the development process.
The salon witnessed a video presentation of youth empowerment opportunities during the era of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and a presentation segment on the outcomes of the Youth Visions Salon in previous editions, which included presenting different visions and ideas, correcting some misconceptions, educating youth and enhancing their capabilities, and removing barriers between youth and decision-makers.
