Int'l Cooperation Min.: Egypt Ventures Pumped EGP 104 Mln in 2020 Investments

Minister of International Cooperation Dr. Rania Al-Mashat announced that investment firm Egypt Ventures raised investments of EGP 104 million in 2020 to empower the entrepreneurial ecosystem and drive innovation; EGP 72.4 million of investments were directed to six startups and EGP 31.4 million to business accelerators.

This makes the total number of investments since its establishment in 2017 amount to about EGP 306.2 million in 150 startups, of which EGP 139.9 million are direct investments and EGP 166.3 million are indirect investments.

To review the firm’s progress in 2020, Egypt Venture’s board of directors held a meeting in the presence of Chairman and CEO of EFG EV Ahmed Gomaa, Advisor to the Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Dr. Gihane Saleh, Director General of Operation the Saudi Fund for Development Hassan Al-Attas, Assistant Minister of International Cooperation for Small and Medium Enterprises Nermin Al-Taheri, founder and CEO of ITWorx Youssri Helmy, CEO of NI Capital Mohamed Metwally and General Manager of Endeavor Egypt Mohamed Ramy.

The meeting also saw the approval of the investment committee’s decisions to support three emerging and innovative startups in the fields of medical technology, research and industrial development, and financial technology.

Al-Mashat stated that the firm established a unique model to support Egyptian startups in the early and growth stages, which combines public funding with private sector engagement to encourage innovation according to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles and drive the country’s overall GDP growth.

The minister added that SMEs are key in building an innovation-driven economy, which has become increasingly relevant in the current changing global environment, and which necessitates the need for countries to leverage the growing digital economy and strengthen their capacity through a strong, educated, and innovative workforce.

On his part, Gomaa noted that the firm aims to invest in fintech and tech startups owned by Egyptians as well as other nationalities based in Egypt and that it is seeking through its short-term plan to provide alternative financing opportunities for Egyptian entrepreneurs, open local investment opportunities for Egyptians, establish links with experts residing abroad to transfer knowledge and experience and open doors for cooperation, in addition to supporting regional and global expansion to achieve high investment returns.

Gomaa added that the long-term plan aims to transform Egypt into a regional powerhouse for innovation and entrepreneurship in the Middle East and North Africa and attract foreign and domestic investments in the tech industry.