Nawah Scientific Secures $23M to Propel Global Expansion and Research Prowess

Nawah Scientific marked its tenth anniversary this week with a celebration at Cairo’s Salah El‑Din Citadel, and the setting alone said a lot about how far the company has come. What started as a science‑driven venture offering advanced testing services across Egypt and the wider region has, bit by bit, grown into something much bigger. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the event brought together senior officials, investors and researchers, including Hossam Heiba, who heads the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones. I’ve seen plenty of startup gatherings through Arageek over the years, but it’s not every day you see a decade-old company filling a historic fortress with researchers and policymakers shoulder to shoulder.

The big headline of the evening was the signing of a new 23 million dollar funding round, led by Life Ventures Holding. According to Nawah’s founder and CEO, Dr Omar Shoukry Sakr, the capital is set to fuel both regional and international expansion, while strengthening the company’s research and technology capabilities. He also mentioned that Nawah had just been selected as part of the presidential “Alliance and Development” initiative, which must have added an extra spark to the festivities.

Heiba didn’t mince his words either. He described Nawah as a national example of how scientific research can meet real-world development needs, saying the company has shown what Egypt’s private sector can do when it invests seriously in science. And believe it or not, he went further, arguing that Nawah’s model fits neatly with the country’s ambition to build a value‑added, tech‑driven economy. He also stressed that GAFI is keen on supporting institutions that help localise technology and strengthen scientific independence—things that, frankly, are easier said than done in many markets across the region.

On the flip side, what struck me was how he framed Nawah’s success not just as commercial progress but as institutional scientific excellence. That’s a big claim, and I reckon it’s spot on given the scale the company has reached. Nawah now works with clients in 30 countries, employs around 160 researchers, and has tested more than one million samples. For a business that once described itself simply as a cloud lab enabling remote experiments, that’s quite a leap… you know?

Dr Sakr said this tenth year feels like a turning point as the company prepares for wider scientific and geographic impact. He explained that the fresh funding reflects investor confidence in Nawah’s specialised, research‑based model and its long‑term potential. Among the next steps: expanding research infrastructure, doubling lab capacity in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and setting up a global research centre in Rwanda. The round itself comes as a blended package of equity and debt, with additional backing from deep‑tech and life‑science investors such as Den Ventures, Empire M, AfricInvest, Elsewedy, plus a handful of angel investors and banks.

Over the years, Nawah has moved beyond basic testing into pharmaceuticals and food research, and even began producing certified reference materials—something only a small number of companies worldwide do. It’s the sort of niche capability that often sounds like a bit of a faff until you realise entire industries rely on it. And from what I’ve seen working with founders across the region, such deep‑tech plays don’t usually get to their tenth birthday unless they’re doing something right. I was definatley reminded of that as I followed the updates from the citadel.

🚀 Got exciting news to share?

If you're a startup founder, VC, or PR agency with big updates—funding rounds, product launches 📢, or company milestones 🎉 — AraGeek English wants to hear from you!

✉️ Send Us Your Story 👇

https://en.arageek.com/send-us-your-story-or-a-news-tip