African Development Bank with the ministry to boost entrepreneurship in Egypt by LE 10M
A LE 10 million grant has been signed by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation with the African Development Bank (ADB). This grant was signed on Sunday and it particularly aims to improve the environmental management system for Fekratk Sherkatk initiative.
The Fekratk Sherkatk initiative is a supportive framework and a portfolio of entrepreneurship which has transformed young people’s dreams into reality.
Sahar Nasr, the Minister of Investment, clearly stated that "the grant aims at strengthening the environmental ecosystem of entrepreneurship, which aims to contribute to enhancing and improving the environmental system of entrepreneurship in Egypt by strengthening the role of the Entrepreneurship Center".
According to the Minister, the grant would also help to provide technical and legal information as well as business development services to young investors and entrepreneurs.
Nasr also explicated that a central administration has been established under the name of "Central Administration of Entrepreneurship –Fekratk Sherkatk" in the organizational structure of the General Authority for Investment. This was mainly done so that the initiative may embrace sustainability and continue to benefit the entrepreneurs after the success it achieved in its first year.
The minister further explained that all the global statistics have illustrated that these small and medium enterprises provide numerous employment opportunities for the youth which is why the ministry has undergone such reforms to support startups.
The director of the African Development Bank Malin Bloomberg has said that the bank is determined and looking forward to support and promote entrepreneurship, exemplifying that “in 2016 the bank launched an initiative to support entrepreneurs throughout the region and provide grants to support innovations and emerging companies”.
Moreover, the director also appreciated the efforts and the initiatives made by the Egyptian government to support entrepreneurs. She praised the legislative reforms made to improve the business and investment environment.
According to Bloomberg, Egypt has recently recorded progress in the innovation index, overcoming the challenges and introducing legislative reforms that were reported last year in the Doing Business Report. She praised the efforts put forth by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation to support entrepreneurship and to provide technical support to emerging companies.
She emphasized that this agreement mainly aimed to support the ministry’s efforts to boost entrepreneurship and lauded that the Fekratk Sherkatk initiative and the Entrepreneurs' Center established by the ministry will provide technical support to entrepreneurs hence helping them to flourish.