Within the framework of the South Korean delegation’s visit to Egypt:

A tripartite meeting between ERRADA, the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (SMEDA) and the Korean delegation to discuss policies and financing for startups in Egypt

Cairo, May 4, 2023

Dr. Heba Shahin, Executive Director of the Egyptian Initiative for Reforming the Business Climate (ERRADA), Mr. Basil Rahmy, CEO of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), and a delegation from South Korea met to discuss policies and financing for startups in Egypt, during the delegation’s visit to Cairo.

During the meeting, Dr. Heba Shahin, Executive Director of the Egyptian Initiative for Reforming the Business Climate (ERRADA), indicated that the Korean delegation’s visit comes in light of the importance that the Egyptian government attaches to supporting startups within the framework of the state’s comprehensive plan to advance the national economy, as ERRADA, under the supervision of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development in cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), is hosting the Korean delegation against the backdrop of the ongoing cooperation between the two sides in the field of preparing policies and legislative studies aimed at creating an attractive legislative environment for investment and financing startups in Egypt.
Shaheen stressed that startups help drive economic and social development, noting that the SME sector in Egypt is a major driver of the economy and one of the fastest growing areas that enhance economic growth and help in regional development. These projects play an important role in creating job opportunities in the Egyptian market, and are one of the most important factors that the Egyptian government focuses on to help strengthen its economy and achieve sustainable development goals. For his part, Mr. Basil Rahmy, CEO of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency, stressed enhancing cooperation with all international bodies interested in and concerned with the small enterprise development sector and the field of entrepreneurship, encouraging young people to work independently and establish small projects that provide stable job opportunities, especially innovative projects that meet the growing needs of the Egyptian market. Rahmy pointed out that cooperation with the Korean side and the "Erada" initiative comes within the framework of benefiting from pioneering experiences in supporting and developing small projects, especially innovative and technological projects, to benefit from these experiences and transfer expertise to Egyptian youth, while providing services and facilities provided by the agency to finance such projects, adding that the agency cooperates with a large number of international entities to transfer their expertise and use them in developing advanced policies that contribute to the advancement of the small projects sector in Egypt. It is noteworthy that the visit of the Korean delegation comes within a series of reciprocal visits between the two countries, which was preceded by a visit by an Egyptian delegation headed by "Erada" to South Korea, with the aim of bringing about a comprehensive change in the framework governing the work of start-up companies and entrepreneurship in Egypt, enhancing Egypt's image as an attractive environment for investment, and bringing about the desired legislative reform, with the support of the Korean government, in a way that achieves growth in the volume of direct investments, in addition to encouraging local investment and providing an attractive alternative to investment exit to foreign markets