The IFE’s goal is to improve Egypt’s overall business climate by training workers to qualify for better job opportunities, expand the private sector, and diversify Egypt’s business environment
Germany’s KfW Development Bank, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), recently held a media roundtable to discuss its “Investing in Employment” (IFE) facility which aims to reduce Egypt’s employment gap and remove investment barriers between the two countries.
The IFE’s goal is to improve Egypt’s overall business climate by training workers to qualify for better job opportunities, expand the private sector, diversify Egypt’s business environment, as well as support SMEs and other companies that create large amounts of job opportunities.
“We are not only here to create new job opportunities but also to improve work conditions and expand new investment opportunities…We are [also] here to encourage joint ventures between local and international companies to help exchange experiences,” said Rauf Khalaf, Managing Director of Investing for Employment.
Khalaf added that the IFE seeks to break investment barriers through funding opportunities, pointing to the importance of diverse financing options for companies.
Since its establishment last year, the IFE has sent out multiple calls for proposals, including a thematic call “Women in Business” aimed at supporting female entrepreneurs, as well as businesses owned and/or led by women to support and promote women's employment.
“The IFE received an average of 100 applications from Egypt last year with a total project investment worth EGP 25 billion. In the shortlisting process, an average of 20% of the applications with an investment worth EGP 3 billion were selected for studying and assessing,” explained Karim Gad, Country Focal Point of Investing for Employment fEgypt.
“These proposed projects will create 16,000 job opportunities within the first three operational years alone. Additionally, projects of training will help contribute to preparing and training 21,000 trainees,” he added.
For projects to be eligible for the facility, they must meet the following requirements
-Not-for-profit Projects with job creation impact (no revenues): The Facility covers up to 90 % of the investment costs
- Not-for-profit Projects with job creation impact (generating revenues): The Facility covers up to 75 % of the investment costs
- For-profit Projects with broader job creation impact: The Facility covers up to 35 % of the investment costs
- For-profit Projects with job creation impact: The Facility covers up to 25 % of the investment costs
All private companies across all sectors and regions within the partner companies can apply for funding. Applicants can apply individually, or as a consortium, and in such case, at least one entity must be registered in the partner country.
The IFE launched another regional Call for Proposals on the 21st of November 2022, with the application deadline on the 22nd of December 2022.
The IFE operates under the brand Invest for Jobs, which Initiative aims to remove investment barriers and to create good jobs and training opportunities in its partner countries Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, Rwanda, Senegal, and Tunisia.
