Job Partnerships and SME Promotion in Egypt (JP-SME)

Context

The Egyptian economy is one of the biggest and most dynamic economies of the African continent It offers attractive opportunities for local as well as international companies. The country benefits from a young population, a growing availability of labour and skilled workers as well as a diversified economy.

Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are the main drivers of job creation. However, many of them are facing difficulties in finding steady employees as many people on the job market do not have sufficient practical training. Furthermore, to increase the number of jobs in companies, improve general knowledge transfers and further integrate the Egyptian economy into global supply chains local companies need to be better linked to international investors.

Objective

Partnerships between Egyptian and international companies have led to more job opportunities and better business growth.

Approach

The JP-SME Project is part of the Special Initiative “Decent Work for a Just Transition” of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

To provide a favorable environment for international investors and for Egyptian SMEs  it is active in the following fields:

• Promoting German and other international investments to grow their businesses in Egypt and create employment opportunities in different working fields
• Providing training programmes for young people so they can acquire the necessary skills for jobs with international and Egyptian companies
• Training staff at Egyptian SMEs so companies can grow and become part of global supply chains
• Supporting industrial zones across Egypt
• Facilitating networking and dialogue between public and private partners
• Improving matchmaking between European and Egyptian companies for better access to international export markets

Last update: March 2025