Egypt’s Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT) will witness the launch of four European Union (EU)-funded regional projects, on Thursday, which support entrepreneurs and innovation.
The projects are aimed at establishing and developing business incubators and providing technical and financial support to entrepreneurs and emerging small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
According to AASTMT President Ismail Abdel Ghaffar, the event will be organised in a way that supports hybrid attendance, with in-person attendance at the Academy’s Smart Village headquarters and virtually through Zoom. This will allow for the maximised participation of project partners from various European Union (EU) countries.
Ahmed Al-Wakeel, President of the Association of the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASCAME), said that these projects will be integrated into regional projects and the EU projects for cross-border cooperation, EU ENI CBC Med. This is being implemented to support the new and renewable energy, water desalination, tourism, and industry sectors.
Tariq Tawfiq, First Vice President of the Union of Euro-Mediterranean Industries Federations, said that the union will seek to link entrepreneurs and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the sector on both sides of the Mediterranean Sea.
This is in addition to providing support from large companies for value chains provided by SMEs, with many services developed for private business support organisations to be launched.
Alaa Ezz, Secretary General of the Confederation of Egyptian European Business Associations (CEEBA), said that these projects will continue for a period of three years with a total budget of about €20m.
This includes the regional EU ENI EBSOMED, which aims to raise the efficiency of private and public business support organisations, and create new mechanisms for cooperation.
