SMEPoL began operations in June 2000 with the signature of a
Contribution Agreement between the Canadian International
Development Agency and the International Development
Research Centre, the Canadian Executing Agency and partner
for the project. This followed the signing of a Memorandum
of Understanding (MOU) between the Government of Canada and
the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt in April 2000.
The Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise Policy Development
Project is a five year (2000-2005) initiative. A central
feature of the SMEPoL project is its dual emphasis on short
term policy development and longer run capacity building to
support the small, medium and micro enterprise policy
development objectives of the Egyptian Ministry of Finance
(as of July 2004).
Policy development is thus the central focus of the project
around which other activities revolve. Training, research
and public awareness and networking activities are all
designed to support the achievement of MoF’s M/SME policy
goals. Cross cutting themes of gender equality,
environment, children and labour and institutional capacity
building will continue to be an intrinsic part of the
activities of the project.
Micro, Small and Medium size Enterprises (M/SMEs) play a
critical role in the Egyptian economy, accounting for over
99 percent of all non-agricultural firms, and almost 75
percent of private sector employment. The Egyptian
government is counting on the M/SME sector to generate the
major supply of new employment growth over the next two
decades. But while economic liberalization has opened new
opportunities for M/SMEs, it is also creating new
competitive pressures and highlighting some of the
limitations of the current policy environment.
In recognition of this situation, the project with the
Ministry of Finance (previously with the Ministry of Foreign
Trade) is playing a lead role in the reform of the policy
framework for M/SME development in Egypt. In the former
Ministry of Economy (now the Ministry of Foreign Trade and
Industry), a Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development
Unit (DU) was established in December 1997 within the
Technical Office of the Minister, and a General Department
for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Affairs (GDMA) was
established in March 1998.
The SMEPol project is has been designed to encompass four
main components
Cross cutting themes
Gender equality, environment, children and work and
institutional capacity building are cross cutting themes
which influence the development of SME policy framework and
are critical factors in the project’s implementation.
The strategy for Gender Equality was updated in 2002/03 and
thus far this year, the strategy for Environment as a cross
cutting theme has been updated.
This implementation will continue with training, research
and public awareness as key foci for the remainder of the
year.
Institutional and human capacity development is already a
significant objective for the project and a high level of
effort to support formal training and mentorship will
continue.
CIDA’s Private Sector Development Strategy and CIDA’s
Strategy for Employment and SME Development in Egypt
and the concomitant Key Agency Results will be overarching
frameworks within which the project will operate in addition
to IDRC’s Corporate Strategy and Program Framework.
