The ministry’s 2021 report, “Engaging for Impact towards Our Common Future”, highlighted Egypt’s support for youths, entrepreneurship, and innovation.
The projects span several sectors, including digital transformation, small and medium enterprises, education, capacity building, entrepreneurship, social protection, and scientific research.
The development financing agreements that were concluded for the public and private sectors during the past year amount to $10.2bn, with $8.7bn directed towards the public sector and $1.56bn directed towards the private sector.
The coronavirus pandemic has shed light on the importance of addressing labour issues and building a people-powered economy, as economic activity came to a sudden halt with devastating consequences, with an estimated 305 million jobs lost globally.
The hardest challenge was faced by young workers, as one in six young people lost their jobs. As a result, policies and initiatives must focus on promoting the economic resilience of individuals, families, and the young workforce.
In the second chapter of the report, the ministry documents success stories through the #GameChangers Campaign of entrepreneurs that managed to grow their businesses and ideas from the beginning to the very end, showcasing the full journey of the entrepreneur or the beneficiary.
One story aimed to shed light on the ministry’s partnership with the Saudi Fund for Development to finance drivers to purchase cars and take part in the new digitised era of transportation. This partnership has financed more than 2,500 projects in various sectors and contributed to creating more than 12,000 new jobs in 27 governorates.
The report also sheds light on the Green Trade Initiative (GTI), which is a programme that focuses on enhancing Egypt’s agribusiness value chain through agriculture, industry, and trade workshops and interventions.
In partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, the ministry implemented the project in alignment with the Ministries of Trade and Industry, Agriculture and Land Reclamation, and Investment, benefiting 4,200 farmers across Alexandria, Port Said, Qaliubiya, Luxor, Giza, and Minya.
In the same vein, the ministry produced a film on Polyee Plast, the first and largest factory in the MENA region to produce polycarbonate sheets, an alternative material to glass. The ministry also allocated a development financing worth EGP 3.6m from the Egyptian Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Agency in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme to Polyee Plast, which enabled the company to inaugurate a second factory to expand its production lines.
The report highlights that Egypt has positioned itself as a regional centre for entrepreneurship through many start-ups covering fintech, e-commerce, nutrition, health, agriculture, and much more.
