Egypt's unemployment slows in Q4/2014 to 12.9%

Egypt’s unemployment rate shrank slightly in the fourth quarter of 2014 to 12.9 percent from 13.1 percent in the prior quarter, state-run statistics body CAPMAS announced Monday.

According to CAPMAS, there are 3.7 million Egyptians nationwide who are looking for jobs but cannot find one. The country's labour force totals 27.7 million people.

Around 63 percent of unemployed people are aged between 15 and 29, and 67 percent hold diplomas and higher education certificates.

The CAPMAS quarterly report released Monday revealed that the slight improvement in unemployment levels was driven by better performance in the tourism, telecommunications and construction sectors.

"The most important economic priority for Egypt is jobs. Egypt needs to find a way of creating good jobs for its people while at the same time reducing its budget deficit and maintaining foreign exchange reserves," said Chris Jarvis, the IMF mission chief in Egypt last week.