Within the framework of continuing joint efforts with development partners and the private sector to support the environment of entrepreneurship and innovation, and joint Egyptian-Dutch relations, Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation, witnessed the graduation of 20 startup companies within the sixth batch of the “Orange Corners” program to support startups and entrepreneurship in Upper Egypt, bringing the total number of companies in the six cycles of the program to 116 companies.
The “Orange Corners” program is an initiative of the Dutch government within the framework of a partnership with the government, represented by the Ministry of International Cooperation, and the private sector, represented by the Bank of Alexandria and the Madinet Masr Company, in order to enhance entrepreneurship and innovation efforts in Upper Egypt, and provide technical support and training for emerging companies, especially those managed by female entrepreneurs, in order to provide all aspects of support to enable these companies to achieve growth and enhance their business in the markets.
In her speech, the Minister said that the sixth session constitutes an important milestone in the ongoing efforts to enhance the entrepreneurship environment in Egypt and support female entrepreneurs, especially since 59% of the companies that graduated from the program are run by female entrepreneurs. This highlights the increasing role of women in the entrepreneurial scene in Egypt, especially in Upper Egypt, and in this regard, Al-Mashat congratulated the pioneers and entrepreneurs on their achievement in this training program, noting that their graduation represents an important turning point in their career path.
H.E. explained that startups have a vital role in creating decent job opportunities, especially for the youth community, and the Orange Corners program has contributed over the past three years to creating many job opportunities. Moreover, startups achieved a 44% growth in business volume, with an increase of more than 80% in revenue, which confirms the success and tangible growth achieved by the program.
The Minister thanked the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Bank of Alexandria, as well as the Madinet Masr, for the available support and providing various training courses and consultations for entrepreneurs, adding that the “Orange Corners” program represents a unique model of effective cooperation between Egypt, its international partners and the private sector, in order to build an environment Ideal for entrepreneurship in Egypt.
For his part, H.E. Peter Mollema, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Egypt, said: “Orange Corners is an initiative by the Dutch government that aims at supporting young entrepreneurs and empowering them to create their own job opportunities, in light of limited resources at times. The program contributes to providing jobs for young people and improving their interpersonal skills in several fields. The Netherlands is keen on supporting believing in the role of young people in driving the economy towards prosperity and providing equal opportunities to women. Orange Corners program is an example of a successful partnership between the private sector represented by ALEX Bank and the Madinet Masr Company, and the Dutch government under the auspices of the Ministry of International Cooperation in Egypt.”
The Ministry of International Cooperation is working to strengthen the government’s strategy, in close cooperation with development partners, to support the role of emerging companies and entrepreneurship in Egypt. In this context, it has launched the “Private Sector Engagement Portal: Hub for Advisory, Finance & Investment For Enterprises”. It is a platform that provides all services that combine diverse financing opportunities, specialized technical support, and various training programs, with a total of up to 75 services, thus covering all aspects of supporting entrepreneurs and enhancing their chances of success.
In addition, the current portfolio of the Ministry of International Cooperation includes many programs and projects aimed at keeping pace with economic and technological developments to serve development projects in Egypt, as it includes 36 projects in the field of innovation, digital transformation and entrepreneurship, representing about 4% of the development financing portfolio.
In the same context, the Minister pointed out the vital importance of the startup sector in attracting foreign investments and enhancing human capital, and the leadership of the Egyptian market in this area, as the North African region leads in the acquisition of startup deals, so that 129 startup companies obtained more than More than $1 million, with a total value of more than $2.1 billion from 2019 until October 2023.
The Orange Corners Egypt program is an initiative to provide training, business networks and support to entrepreneurs to start and grow their innovative businesses. The initiative includes two independent business incubation programs - one in Cairo and the other in Upper Egypt (Assiut) - and each program provides recurring training courses for a period of 6 months for 15 to 25 entrepreneurs at a time. The training is specifically concerned with emerging companies in the field of agriculture and creative industries and ensures the participation of women entrepreneurs by no less than 50%. The Orange Corners program is implemented by local implementing partners Cultiv (Cairo) and Outreach Egypt Development Consultations (Upper Egypt).
It is worth noting that Al-Mashat and the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Egypt, visited Assiut Governorate in March 2022, where she witnessed the graduation of a batch of startup companies benefiting from the program. She also visited many development projects implemented within the framework of international partnerships.
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