Entrepreneurs in Egypt’s priority sectors will soon gain access to affordable financing, as the 2025/2026 state budget earmarks 5 billion Egyptian pounds (USD 100.8 million) to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises.
This partnership with the North African country’s Ministry of Finance and the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA), which accounts for the largest economic support in the new budget, represents a significant step in bolstering the private sector and productive industries, according to a statement.
To achieve financial sustainability and enhance MSMEDA’s role in expanding businesses nationwide, this action supports financial policies that foster entrepreneurship and boost private sector activity.
It also fits with new data that shows that in May 2025, startups in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA region) funded USD 289 million through 44 agreements, up 25% from April and 2% from the previous year. Nawy’s USD 75 million round and seven additional deals totalling USD 50 million propelled Egypt to the top of the regional fundraising charts with USD 125 million.
According to a recently issued ministry statement, the funds “will contribute to providing easy financing for young entrepreneurs, targeting priority sectors more closely.”
It further added, “This comes as part of a new phase of strong and effective cooperation with the agency, aiming to achieve financial sustainability for the agency to drive economic growth.”
Egypt’s Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk also mentioned that a preliminary agreement with MSMEDA has been reached to finance projects that empower low-income households, support export-focused projects, encourage entrepreneurship, and boost local manufacturing.
He further stated that preferential, low-cost financing would be made available to the first group of companies to sign up for the streamlined and unified tax system this fiscal year.
MSMEDA CEO Basel Rahmi praised the Ministry of Finance’s initiatives to support new companies and encourage the growth of the private sector. Rahmi commended the minister’s forward-thinking approach, pointing out that it would pave the way for the economic empowerment of young business owners.
In June 2025, a statement issued by the Ministerial Group for Entrepreneurship indicated that Egypt’s startup ecosystem saw notable progress in securing venture capital and debt financing in the first five months of the year, with tracked deals totalling USD 228 million since January.
The statement also disclosed that, at the time, 11 of the 16 acquisitions that were finalised between January and May 2025 disclosed investments totalling USD 156 million in public. Compared to the volume during the same period in 2024, these investments represented a 130% increase.