The Startup Ecosystem of Egypt

Egypt’s startup ecosystem is one of the strongest in North Africa, dominantly led by its capital’s ecosystem, Cairo. The Egyptian ecosystem displays great potential, given the sheer size of the Egyptian market and population of over 110 million people. Egypt also offers entrepreneurs and foreign companies access to skilled and affordable talent. In 2023, Egypt achieved a major milestone by creating its first unicorn, MNT-Halan.
Entrepreneurship, VC funding, and startup related policies have been increasing in recent years, making Egypt an attractive country for investment. Tech incubators and global accelerators have had a positive effect, resulting in the rise of the tech sector and, most notably, Ecommerce startups.
The country has several VC firms and government support initiatives offering funding to startups, including Egypt Ventures, a government-backed VC. It is assisting technology-based startups that contribute to an innovative ecosystem. Nclude, the latest fund for fintech supported by Egypt’s largest banks and Global Ventures, will provide an additional influx of investment in the country’s tech sector.
The Egyptian startup ecosystem can extend its success by encouraging an entrepreneurial mindset and pursuing regulatory improvement. The rate of startups participating in accelerator or incubators programs is increasing, and it’s encouraging to see the public sector supporting this through initiatives such as TIEC. While entrepreneurship is on the rise, the hi tech scene is still male-dominated, and could benefit from increased participation of female startup founders. As far as challenges go, the Egyptian public sector should continue removing bureaucracy and red tape, and enact reforms to allow for the growth of the local startup ecosystem.
Egypt has long had a strong business culture, and we are seeing this reflected in the startup scene. The recent improvement in internet quality should also be commended, as critical infrastructure is continuing to be deployed in the country. The Egyptian startup ecosystem is a clear economic engine for this leading African nation, and we hope to see more innovative startups emerge from Egypt.