With a young, tech-minded population of 90 million, Egypt proudly stands as one of the fastest growing entrepreneurial hubs worldwide, says a study by Virgin. But did something change with its two revolutions?
The Global Entrepreneurship Report for Egypt may be an attempt to answer that. The first capturing of the effect of the revolution on entrepreneurship, the document gives a powerful panorama on Egypt’s evolving ecosystem. Created by the British University in Egypt, the International Development Research Centre and Silatech, it offers interesting insights into three phenomena:
1. An active ecosystem: In 2012, a surprising 11.5% of adults were actively trying to start a new business or owning a young business in Egypt. That means, if extrapolated to the total population, that an estimated 3.6 million Egyptians are early stage entrepreneurially active. In other words, Egypt’s brightest minds no longer wait to be discovered and get down to business, as Haitham Desoky and his touch-sticker innovation prove.
2. More favorable conditions: The majority of Egyptian adults and entrepreneurs felt that conditions to start and grow a business had improved after the revolution. According to an estimate by Flat6Labs, it costs an average $1,500 to register and establish a company in Cairo today, a figure which allows young entrepreneurs like Noura to turn her childhood dream into her own business.
3. Rising aspirations: 85% of Egyptian adults believe that entrepreneurship is a desired career choice. Why is dreaming this important? “Perhaps never before has Egypt needed an enterprise culture as it does now. With an unstable political economy, reduced foreign aid, inward investment and job opportunities, the country needs to begin to take ownership of its own destiny by generating more job and wealth creating opportunities,” says BUE’s Vice-president David Kirby in the report.
For more information: Download GEM Egypt
