A 10 million euro loan and two million euro grant to finance a skill park for fashion and design in Addis Abeba and an enterprise incubator hub in Jimma town, Oromia Regional State was lauched. Financed by the Italian government, the project targets job creation for women and youth, according to officials. State Minister for Finance Semereta Sewasew, and Italian Ambassador to Ethiopia Agostino Palese, signed the agreement to fund the project last week. The International Labor Organization (ILO) projects a rise of 2.2 million unemployed individuals and a decline in real wages due to high inflation. Ethiopia, in particular, has been grappling with a working poverty rate of around 18.3pc two years ago, with the latest labour standards pegging it slightly above two dollars. The Ministry of Labor & Skills in Ethiopia has been expanding its Technical & Vocational Education & Training (TVET) programs. This expansion aims to accommodate the increasing number of individuals transitioning from the formal education route to address the annual influx of freshly unemployed individuals into the workforce.