Black Friday Sales taking place this month are taking their toll on Cairo’s e-commerce sites. The sales rash is contagious, not only to consumers, but also to marketers. The season is a win-win, where customers need to leverage this one-time opportunity to buy their needs at discounted prices, and merchants get to acquire customers and […]
Every year, the American University in Cairo (AUC) School of Business’s very own startup accelerator, Venture Lab (V-Lab) features dozens of the most exciting startups working in a variety of industries and sectors. The environment and climate action are very high on the global agenda, which makes it no surprise that this year featured a
According to a recently published report by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Egypt’s agricultural business (agri-business) sector, which includes agriculture and food processing, contributes 24.5 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 23.2 percent to labor value added. 78.3 percent of food processing takes place in Lower Egypt, while 30.2 percent
In a series we started on International Women’s Day 2020, Business Forward explores modern-day obstacles to women leading successful businesses and happy, functional families. In part two of our series, we speak with parentpreneur Dr. K.R. Maalathi, founder and CEO of the India-based Auuro Educational Services. 30 years ago, her professional life began as a
The term “entrepreneurial universities” was coined nearly four decades ago to describe universities that effectively deliver on generating responsible knowledge outside of academic environments, and that work to uphold the social and economic well-being of their community. This ‘triple helix’ model was developed to depict the relationship between academia, industry and government. Since then, many
The biggest threat to global economy since the 2008 financial crisis, the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has proven to be vicious and resilient, with no signs of abating anytime soon. Faced with such powerful, invisible enemy, businesses across the world have been hit hard. Big conglomerates and corporations may have deep enough pockets to weather the storm,
A short drive around just a few of New Cairo’s main causeways will show no shortage of street carts selling a variety of foods and beverages. While such sights are an inextricable part of the urban fabric of Egypt’s towns and cities, their presence in relatively new desert satellite cities such as New Cairo still
Established in 1981, Ashoka is one of the world’s leading international non-profit organizations that supports social entrepreneurs. Through their unique fellowship program, Ashoka searches the globe for innovative social entrepreneurs bringing significant positive change to their community. Through a rigorous vetting process, Ashoka selects social entrepreneurs to become a fellow of the organization. The Ashoka
The biggest story currently making the rounds in Egypt’s entrepreneurship ecosystem is Egyptian matchmaking app Harmonica’s acquisition by Match Group, the mother company of matchmaking and dating services OkCupid, Tinder, Plentyoffish and others. Harmonica, as an app, promises a serious matchmaking for singles in the Middle East to connect with respect to traditions and culture.
It is the startup season once again. Like every year, the last few months of the closing fiscal year host an array of demo days of Egypt’s different incubators and accelerators, graduating new cycles of startups and getting ready for the next one. This time around, the startups that graduated from AUC Venture Lab, Flat6Labs
Studies have shown that entrepreneurship in developing countries is usually necessity-driven. In Egypt, for instance, 73% of the population thinks that entrepreneurship is a good career choice, according to the latest Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Egypt report, mainly due to the lack of job and growth opportunities. In developing countries, the situation is different. On
In recent years, multiple entities have been working to improve the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Egypt. With Cairo under the microscope, resources are often allocated to the country’s capital – hence, leaving other parts of Egypt almost unremembered. Having been in Cairo since 2013 and establishing itself as one of the biggest entrepreneurial summits in the
