CEO of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA) Moustafa Ismail Hassan said the agency invested in 16 investment funds, with a total contribution of $55 million, helping attract $455 million in foreign direct investment to co-invest with the agency in Egyptian startups.
Hassan added that 170 Egyptian startups benefited from these funds, while 93 startups have been accredited and classified since the launch of the Startup Charter in February 2026. He explained that specialized training programs offered by the agency have benefited 318 people, including entrepreneurs, staff members of institutions supporting entrepreneurship and managers and employees of venture capital funds, in addition to 22 personnel from banking and financial institutions.
Hassan made these remarks during his participation in the “Entrepreneur Pitches: From Idea to Growth” session at the Egypt Forum, held in the New Capital. He outlined the agency’s role in supporting the entrepreneurship ecosystem and its mechanisms for working with young people, entrepreneurs and startup owners, from the initial idea through to establishing economically viable businesses with growth and expansion potential.
Hassan affirmed that MSMEDA seeks to contribute to building a development-oriented, competitive economy based on knowledge and information by focusing on entrepreneurs and building their capabilities. He described this as one of the agency’s key priorities for the coming period.
Hassan stressed the importance of establishing a database dedicated to the micro, small and medium-sized enterprise sector, including startups. He explained that the agency would collect the necessary data through its own resources and in cooperation with relevant state agencies and institutions.
Hassan praised the close cooperation between MSMEDA and the Ministry of Finance, as well as the ministry’s support for the agency across various areas related to small-business development, particularly the venture capital program. He said that MSMEDA received an award for the best program managed under World Bank supervision in emerging markets, in addition to the 2026 award for outstanding government initiatives supporting startups and small and medium-sized enterprises from The Global Economics and the 2025 award for Best Venture Capital Program from International Finance.