With a portfolio of some 68.6 million euros allocated, including 11 million euros in grants and 57.6 million euros in aid credit, Italian Cooperation in Egypt is committed to promoting inclusive and sustainable economic development, and private sector technological innovation. In particular, the initiatives work on improving industrial sectors where Italy can bring added value, such as tanning, and on the growth of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and startups. In addition, initiatives in this area pay special attention to environmental protection, respect for workers’ rights, and support for the segments of the population most affected by unemployment such as young people and women.
Industry
In the industrial sector, the technical assistance program for the “Robbiki Leather City” (RLC) tanning industrial park, worth €6 million per gift under direct management, is underway. The initiative offers support to tanners in the decisive phase of relocation to RLC and the upgrading of leather production activities. The project focuses on supporting the management of the Leather Tanning Technology Center (LTTC) and common facilities of RLC.
MPMIs and Startups
Initiatives to support MPMIs and startups focus on supporting activities to improve productivity, and access to credit. In 2023, the “Accelerating High Potential Entrepreneurship in Egypt” initiative started, in the amount of €5 million gift to be implemented by the World Bank, which aims to fill identified gaps in the ‘entrepreneurial ecosystem through four components: 1) Improving the capacity of startups and organizations that support entrepreneurship to receive investment; 2) Developing partnerships between local startups and the international ecosystem; 3) Strengthening angel investor groups in Egypt; and 4) Strengthening the Venture Capital sector.
Initiatives that promote access to credit include two projects financed through aid credit. The first is the “MPMI Development Credit Line with MSMEDA” project (AID 6437), which amounts to 12.6 million euros and is implemented by the Egyptian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), which offers credits with favorable interest rates through the local banking system to be used both for the purchase of machinery and technical assistance services.
In addition, an initiative implemented by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in the amount of 45 million euros, entitled “Supporting Private Sector Development in Egypt” (AID 10698), is being launched to help create an enabling environment for private sector development, ensuring sustainable development and inclusive growth of the country’s economy. To this end, the initiative will provide both financial services (line of credit, technology upgrading, Venture Capital) and non-financial services (training and human resource development). Finally, the directly managed initiative “Program to Support the Private Sector and Entrepreneurship through the Establishment of a Technical Assistance Team in Favor of Egyptian SMEs” supports the two credit initiatives with some technical assistance and support to local entities.