EBRD extends $ 21.3 m loan to Red Sea wind energy farm in Egypt
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the development and sustainability of ...
Egypt mulls collaboration with Google, Meta to promote startups role in climate action
Egypt is examining cooperation with Google and Meta to promote the role of startups in combating climate change as the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) will position small businesses as a key partner in creating an open culture for innovation, particularly in solar energy, wind power, electric cars, and green technologies that reduce emissions.
Within this context, Minister of International Cooperation Dr. Rania Mashat held talks with Hisham Al-Nazer, Office Director of Google Egypt, and Martin Roeske, Google’s Head of Government Relations and Public Policies for the Middle East and North Africa, in the presence of Maha Afifi, Director of Government Relations at Google, and Tamer Taha, Advisor to the Minister of International Cooperation for digitalization and entrepreneurship, and representatives of the Muharram & Partners consulting firm.
The talks tackled prospects for cooperation during the “Youth Day” activities of COP27, and highlighted the role played by the ministry to support entrepreneurship and innovation efforts through development finance.
Meanwhile, Mashat also held a meeting with Carlos Ahumada, Meta’s Director of Public Policy and Data for the Middle East and North Africa, Nadia Diab, Head of Instagram’s Public Policy in MENA, Ahmed Shehada, Head of Government and Non-Profit Institutions in the Middle East and North Africa, and Tamer Taha and representatives of Muharram & Partners consulting firm.
The minister noted that Egypt is uniquely positioned as a regional hub in the Middle East and Africa for start-ups and entrepreneurship, with many recent measures taken by the government to create an enabling environment for startups to be established through digital registration and tax exemptions.
Entrepreneurs in Egypt are now able to formally register their business through a “digital notification” platform to eliminate all obstacles facing start-ups and entrepreneurs. Egypt will also allow the formal establishment of virtual companies, without the need for a physical headquarters to cut costs on renting.
Egypt’s startup sector has been on a rapid rise over the past years, culminating in an all-time high funding volume of EGP 8.9 billion ($ 491 million) in Magnitt’s 2021 Egypt Venture Investment Report.
In 2022, Egypt’s Swvl debuted in the United States’ Nasdaq stock market as the first-ever Middle Eastern unicorn (start-up with a valuation higher than $ 1 billion).
The Ministry of International Cooperation’s ongoing portfolio includes about $1 billion to implement 36 projects in the field of innovation and entrepreneurship provided by 16 development partners.
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