MSMEDA Pumps $11.9B into Upper Egypt’s Small Biz Boom

Editorial Team

Last updated 21-03-2025

2 min

Egypt's MSMEDA invested LE 11,9 billion in small businesses across Minya, Fayoum, and Beni Suef.

This funding supported 574,349 projects and created 826,300 permanent jobs in Upper Egypt.

MSMEDA helped 21,000 small businesses obtain licences, boosting access to developmental benefits.

Collaboration with international partners improved infrastructure, creating 7,9 million employment days.

The strategy mirrors a regional trend, empowering small businesses for economic revival.

Since July 2014, Egypt’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (known as MSMEDA) has funnelled a substantial LE 11.9 billion into small and micro businesses in three key governorates—Minya, Fayoum and Beni Suef—in the northern stretch of Upper Egypt. These investments have supported some 574,349 individual projects, leading to the creation of 826,300 permanent jobs, alongside countless short-term opportunities, particularly benefiting informal workers.

Of the three governorates, Minya benefitted most, taking the lion's share of funding. And it’s not just job creation at play; MSMEDA-backed initiatives have also improved infrastructure and fostered valuable community programmes across the region. Meanwhile, the agency has been instrumental in helping around 21,000 small businesses secure official licences and classification certificates, an essential step toward tapping into the perks offered by Egypt's Small Enterprise Development Law 152/2020.

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Over the past decade, collaborating with international partners has allowed MSMEDA to roll out vital infrastructure improvements, generating around 7.9 million days' worth of employment in the area—no mean feat considering the socio-economic hurdles the region traditionally faces.

It's a real game changer; several friends who've travelled through Upper Egypt lately often tell me they've noted a distinct buzz in local markets, bustling cafés, and vibrant craft stalls. "It feels like there's a genuine shift, a new dose of optimism," one mate recently observed over a cuppa as we discussed the news featured on platforms like Arageek.

In a slightly broader context, the wider MENA region saw its startups attract over $494 million in funding in February alone—an undeniably impressive haul. One standout is Lucky ONE, a venture that's secured substantial investment with the ambition of turning a profit by early 2025. It makes you think: perhaps MSMEDA's approach mirrors a region-wide trend of empowering small businesses to drive broader economic revival.

Either way, the injection of nearly 12 billion Egyptian pounds into thriving, local-level enterprises marks an important leap forward—not just for these specific communities in Minya, Fayoum and Beni Suef—but potentially as a blueprint for other developing regions seeking economic stabilty and sustainable growth.

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