As part of the UK Department for International Development’s (DfID) program to fight poverty in rural Egypt, OHK’s Ahmed Hassan will act as executive producer for an ad campaign and a series of video casts, leading production and subject matter expert teams from Egypt and the UK on a tour of 50 rural regions across six Governorates in Egypt’s Nile Valley. As Mr. Hassan noted: “This is not a job – it's an honor to be able to help get priority attention to the poor communities and deprived areas of Egypt. There is dire need to go beyond the meager public funds available and get the private sector involved.”
The campaign will focus on presenting business-minded approaches to poverty that can make a difference through private investments in micro, small, and medium size enterprises in rural regions. In his role during the tour, Ahmed will devise 100 projects that meet both the expectations of investors and the needs of poor communities. “This advocacy campaign will tell a story about the role that private investment has to play in some of the most impoverished parts of Egypt – a role that links profit margins to the improvement of local livelihoods.”
Update: As of 2004, more than 100 hours of public TV streaming and 5,000 DVDs have been distributed to the Egyptian public.