Supporting agricultural SMEs in order to promote rural employment

Egypt, like other Mediterranean countries, has a dual system of agriculture where traditional agriculture with a low added value, which accounts for some 90% of production, exists alongside commercial agriculture, which is conducted by large holdings recently developed on the “new land” reclaimed from the desert. The processing of agricultural products continues to be poorly developed, which explains the low added value of the sector. In this context, the very small size of traditional family farms makes it crucial to organize them in order to manage irrigation networks, provide access to inputs and machines, and market their products.

The project aims to increase incomes for actors in the agriculture sector by giving them easier access to credit and integrating them more into agricultural industries. In order to finance the agriculture sector, a contribution is being made to an existing Ministry of Agriculture fund, ARDF (Agricultural Research and Development Fund), which is intended to finance agricultural SMEs, and a guarantee fund is being set up for the agriculture sector. This fund primarily targets the dairy and aquaculture sectors.

Creation of 400 SMEs and 20,000 direct and indirect jobs. The guarantee fund is expected to have 16,000 beneficiaries over a 7-year period.