On 13th March 2017 the kick off meeting of the EU-funded project Support to Implementation of Strategies to Foster MSME Development in Egypt was held in the premises of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in Cairo.

The purpose of this service contract is to support the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and its key stakeholders in implementation of strategies to foster SME and entrepreneurship development in Egypt. This will include helping the Policy and Strategy Unit at the MTI to finalise the design of the Ministy’s National SMEs and entrepreneurship development project based on RBM system, the development of clear monitoring and evaluation plan of that project, and to help the executing bodies at the Ministry to implement some components of that project specially those related to the development of the ecosystem such as legislative system, regulatory system, coordination mechanisms.

Dr. Shereen Elsabagh, Coordinator of all DP funded initiatives of MTI and Head of Policy and Strategy Unity of MIT, Ms. Riikka Torppa, Programme Manager – Private Sector Development and Trade of the EU, Mr. Mario Costariol, Project Director, Ms. Romina Carrer, Contract Manager, Mr. Tarek Thabet, Director of Megacom, together with the appointed TA consultants, Mr. Stephen O’Mullane, Team Leader and Advisor on SME Policy and Business Development Services, Mr. Denis Gallagher, Advisor on SME Business Regulatory Environment and Ms. Elisabetta Grassia, Senior Advisor on M&E, participated in a constructive exchange of views on the expectations and goals to be achieved during the 38 months of project implementation.