The second edition of the programme will support 12 technology start-ups led by women through specialised training, mentorship, investment readiness and grant funding.
23 August 2026, Cairo, Egypt: – Standard Chartered Foundation, in partnership with Entlaq and Village Capital, announced today the launch of the second edition of the Women in Tech Accelerator in Egypt. The 2026 cohort will support 12 technology start-ups led by women through investment readiness training, business development support and tailored mentorship, with three winners receiving equity-free grant funding totalling USD 35,000 at the end of the programme.
The programme is designed for Women led technology enabled start-ups that have demonstrated market validation and are ready to scale. It will be delivered in Egypt by Entlaq, drawing on its expertise in entrepreneurship support and ecosystem building.
Mohamed Gad, Chief Executive Officer and Head of Coverage, Standard Chartered Egypt, said:
“Women-led technology businesses are playing an increasingly important role in Egypt’s innovation economy, bringing new ideas to market and creating new avenues for growth. The Women in Tech Accelerator is designed to help that potential scale by providing founders with access to the skills, networks and support needed to strengthen their businesses. In its first cohort, the Egypt programme attracted 240 applications and supported 11 start-ups through over 35 training sessions and more than 40 mentorship sessions and roundtables.
With this second edition, we are building on that foundation by supporting more women-led technology start-ups. Our focus is on helping founders strengthen their capabilities, expand their networks and become more investment ready, giving them a stronger platform to grow their businesses and contribute to Egypt’s innovation economy.”
Yazmin Jumaali, Senior Programme Manager, Village Capital, said:
“The results from our 2025 Women in Tech cohort demonstrate the transformative impact of backing women entrepreneurs. Together, these founders reached nearly 16,000 new customers, created more than 430 jobs, and generated an additional USD 2.7 million in revenue. We are excited to welcome this new group of women founders into our growing community and support them as they build, scale and drive lasting impact.”
Aya Ismail, Co-Founder and Programmes Director at Entlaq, added:
“We are proud to deliver the Egypt edition of the Women in Tech Accelerator in partnership with Standard Chartered Foundation and Village Capital. We believe that empowering women entrepreneurs requires an integrated ecosystem that combines capacity building, mentorship, investment readiness, and access to business and investment networks.
This programme is a natural extension of Entlaq’s mission to build a more inclusive, evidence-based entrepreneurship ecosystem. Our Women in Entrepreneurship Report 2025, the first data-driven assessment of women entrepreneurship in Egypt, found that women-led start-ups continue to receive only a very small share of available venture funding while facing an estimated US$2.2 billion funding gap, alongside limited access to specialised mentoring and professional networks.
Accordingly, this programme is not simply another initiative supporting women entrepreneurs. Rather, it translates research findings and evidence into practical action by transforming policy insights into a structured programme that addresses the real needs of women founders, enabling them to build more investment-ready, competitive, and scalable businesses.”
The Standard Chartered Women in Tech Accelerator builds on a strong global track record, having supported over 4,000 women across 17 markets since inception. This year, the programme has allocated more than USD 600,000 in grant funding to entrepreneurs across 12 markets, with the Egypt cohort competing for equity-free cash prizes totalling USD 35,000 at Demo Day.
Women start-up founders based in Egypt are invited to apply now. Successful applicants will participate in the Accelerator between September and December this year. Full details and eligibility criteria are available at: https://www.sc.com/eg-en/women-in-tech/
About Standard Chartered
We are a leading international banking group, with a presence in 55 of the world’s most dynamic markets. Our purpose is to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, and our heritage and values are expressed in our brand promise, here for good.
Standard Chartered PLC is listed on the London and Hong Kong stock exchanges.
For more stories and expert opinions please visit Insights at sc.com. Follow Standard Chartered on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.
About Standard Chartered Foundation
The Standard Chartered Foundation is a charitable organisation established by Standard Chartered in 2019. It is committed to helping tackle inequality by empowering under-served young people, especially women and people with disabilities. It sets the strategy for – and funds – youth employability and entrepreneurship programmes across Standard Chartered’s markets, helping young people access the skills, networks and support they need to secure decent work and grow their businesses. The Standard Chartered Foundation is a registered charity in England and Wales (charity number 1184946). See the website for more information: Standard Chartered Foundation.
About Village Capital
Village Capital is a global leader in impact investing, helping early-stage start-ups access the type of social and financial capital they need to grow – reshaping the supply and demand sides of capital flows as a result.
Since 2009, Village Capital has directly supported more than 2,100 impact start-ups in 70 countries. Together, these founders have raised over USD 9.6 billion across economic mobility, environmental sustainability, and access to essential services. It has made 116 investments through its various affiliated funds, including Vilcap Investments, which has invested in 91 peer-selected companies. Additionally, 26,000 entrepreneurs have used its Abaca web app to take at least one assessment, helping them expand their access to financial capital.
Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.
About Entlaq
Entlaq Holding is a Cairo-based think tank and ecosystem development firm operating at the intersection of research, policy, and programme delivery. Since 2023, Entlaq has supported 223 start-ups, reached more than 25,156 beneficiaries, and engaged 250 ecosystem stakeholders across 12 governorates.
The organisation has developed Egypt’s most comprehensive entrepreneurship data infrastructure, publishing 17 Sector Diagnostic Reports across nine economic sectors, led by the Women in Entrepreneurship Report 2025—Egypt’s first data-driven assessment of the barriers, funding gaps, and market conditions facing women entrepreneurs.
Entlaq’s mission is to strengthen Egypt’s position as the region’s leading innovation hub by fostering an entrepreneurial ecosystem that is innovative, inclusive, and impact-driven. This mission is delivered through two integrated capabilities. Its research arm generates robust, evidence-based insights into the structural barriers affecting entrepreneurship and identifies where these challenges are most acute. Its programme delivery arm translates those insights into structured, outcome-focused interventions that deliver measurable impact.
At the heart of Entlaq’s approach is a consistent institutional methodology. The quality of its work is embedded in its systems rather than individuals, ensuring that every programme is designed and delivered using the same rigorous institutional framework, regardless of sector, cohort size, or geographical location.
To learn more, visit: Entlaq.com