UNIDO IPU Egypt

Investment Promotion Unit in Cairo

General information

The UNIDO Investment Promotion Unit (IPU) Egypt is an initiative launched in 1998 by the “General Authority for Investment and Free Zones" (GAFI), the Italian Government and UNIDO for the development of local industrial SMEs through cooperation with Italian and foreign counterparts.

The Unit is part of the UNIDO Investment and Technology Promotion Offices (ITPO) network and of the UNIDO Arab-Mediterranean network formed by the ITPOs (Bahrain, France, Greece, Italy) and IPUs (Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia) operating in the Mediterranean-Arab Region.

Services

The role of the Investment Promotion Unit is to provide support to the SME in terms of technical and financial assistance.

The Unit supports the Egyptian SMEs sector with a wide range of business development services such as:

• Assistance in the preparation and appraisal of industrial business plans.
• Promotion in Italy of Investment project and other business opportunities for the identification of potential partners.
• Assistance in the preparation, formulation and negotiation of joint ventures agreements and other forms of industrial co-operation with Italian counterparts.
• Diagnostic of problems at technical, managerial, marketing and financial level.
• Identification of sources of finance available through the Egyptian banking system and other suitable financial packages.

The Unit also facilitates access to a credit line facility from the Italian Government, made available through the Egyptian banking system for financing at soft terms the acquisition of equipment of Italian origin, technical training and assistance, industrial patents and licensing, including transport costs.

Priority is given to one or a combination of the following:

• Equity joint ventures
• Technology upgrading
• Technology innovation
• Employment generation
• Clean production

Conditions

• The maximum disbursement per project is LIT 3,5 billions and the minimum disbursement LIT 350 millions.
• An amount of equal to 20% of the total disbursement can cover associated investment cost of local origin, included in the supply contract.
• The application must be submitted to the IPU office in Cairo by the Egyptian company, together with a draft business plan describing the initiative.

see also: website ITPO Italy