Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC) of the Egyptian Cabinet
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) has become a cornerstone in national economies. They play a vital role in achieving economic development and eradicating unemployment. One can differentiate between small and medium-sized enterprises by measuring the number of employees and annual revenue. Looking at Egyptian SMEs, they have been growing since the 1990s.
SMEs are defined by Egyptian laws as the enterprises whose capital ranges from EGP 50,000 to EGP 1 million with a maximum of 50 employees. In fact, the comprehensive economic and structural reforms in Egypt contributed in promoting SMEs. The Egyptian government has adopted national policies to develop SMEs through marketing, issuing laws increasing financial and technical support presented to such enterprises.
In addition, the government has been working on widening the scope of digitization, application of financial inclusion, and improvement of governmental monitoring. The objective is to improve the performance of SMEs, enhance their contribution to national economic growth, and help them overcome any crises. The most significant challenges facing SMEs are lack of financial resources, change in consumers’ attitudes and preferences, various global crises such as the global financial crises, or COVID-19 and its economic repercussions.
Within context, this issue of IDSC policy perspective discusses on the state of SMEs in the Egyptian markets, illustrating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on them, and determining driving and restraining factors of these enterprises.
