Using a spatial approach, this study analyzes the distribution of Egypt’s labour force across its
twenty seven governorates, and the rate of unemployment in each governorate by age, gender, and
level of education. At the national level, Egypt’s most pressing unemployment problem is among
the holders of intermediate education, followed by youth, male and female unemployment, and
among holders of university degrees and above. At the governorate level, the highest problems
were found in: Behera, Sharkia, Gharbia, Suhag, Alexandria, Cairo, Dakahlia, Menia, Asyout, and
Faiyum. The study then identifies possible sources of the problem(s), including investment patterns
and energy subsidies that created a heavily capital and energy intensive industrial structure. Other
sources relate to access to finance, and weak and heavily concentrated infrastructure investment
favoring Greater Cairo and Alexandria. The study found evidence of misalignment between output
of technical and vocational education and governorates’ leading activities. Based on these findings,
the study puts forth two sets of possible solutions. The first is cross-cutting, including facilitating
access to finance especially for SMEs, phasing out energy subsidies, ensuring synergy between
technical and vocational education and the governorates’ leading activities, and raising
infrastructure investments, particularly in infrastructure deficient governorates. The second set is
governorate-specific and involves nominating manufacturing industries for potential investment as
well as building on the mining/quarrying endowments of governorates. The governorate-specific
solutions will be more effective if coupled with fiscal and administrative decentralization.