IFC committed USD 2 bn in funding to Mideast, North Africa in F2017-18: The International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced last week that it committed a record USD 2 bn in funding to private sector projects in the MENA region in FY2017-18, which ended on 30 June. The organization provided USD 1 bn out of its own accounts and raised another USD 1 bn from other regional investors, it said in a press release. “[This] enabled businesses in the region to provide more than 119k jobs, distribute power to about 500k people, and deliver health care to more than 2.9 mn people.” The IFC focused its funding on renewable energy projects, as well as supporting entrepreneurship and the creation of new markets, especially in tech. Egypt’s Benban solar power complex landed some USD 653 mn in funding from the IFC, which plans in FY2019 to “maintain its strategic focus on creating new markets across MENA by supporting the region’s fast-growing renewable energy sector and helping young entrepreneurs deliver innovations.”

Meanwhile, Egypt and the IFC signed an MoU on Thursday to support entrepreneurship and startups in Africa, an Investment Ministry statement said. The agreement will see the ministry and IFC select 100 promising startups from across the continent “and connect them with business leaders, international investors, financial institutions, and policymakers” at the Business for Africa Forum 2018, which will be held in Sharm El Sheikh from 8-9 December. The IFC has extended approximately USD 65 mn in funding to startups, particularly tech, in the MENA region in the last two years, according to a press release.