Struggling Egyptian waste tech startups are in need of a policy push and corporate mandates to help scale their operations, business owners tell EnterpriseAM. Historically, these startups have faced obstacles scaling due to limited awareness and an unstructured market, but the sector could be better positioned to enter a traceable and tech-driven era with a little help.

The informal market: Egypt’s waste system already functions, but it relies heavily on informal collectors that handle material in the thousands of tons and play a central role in recovery, even in major cities. Startups are choosing to integrate these networks rather than compete against them. Circular economy platform Dawar and household collection app Bekya Pay view the informal sector as essential partners, focusing on formalizing their operations through pricing transparency, logistics coordination, and access to larger markets.

The pricing pressure: The recycling business remains heavily constrained by fluctuating global commodity prices. “Materials such as cardboard, metals and plastic prices can vary significantly,” Bekya Pay co-founders Mohamed Ibrahim, Mohamed Hamdy, and Omar Saleh tell EnterpriseAM, noting that these swings directly impact profitability. The local market is also sensitive to international price arbitrage, and our cheap scrap could be sold at a higher price abroad.

IN CONTEXT- The government is tightening its grip on valuable raw materials, extending a strict exportfee on zinc and certain scrap metals until 15 July 2026 to prevent them from bleeding out of the local market. Customs authorities have been instructed to increase inspections and tighten oversight at ports.

The behavior bottleneck: “Households separate their waste only if they can exchange it for an incentive,” Dawar co-founder Hussein Barrada tells us. Even with incentives, the Bekya Pay co-founders describe a dynamic that keeps engagement uneven. The familiar pattern goes like this: “Early adopters join fast, especially in urban and higher-income areas,” lured by awareness campaigns, incentives, and convenience. “After the early growth, interest often plateaus,” as remaining households require stronger incentives or easier access. Growth can resume only after stronger incentives, regulation, or institutional partnerships.

Scaling a formalized system requires massive capital and strict regulatory enforcement. The World Bank estimates that achieving universal waste collection in low-to-middle income countries like Egypt would require spending 0.3% of GDP, up from less than 0.15% today. A shift in policy is also required, with Dawar’s Barrada arguing that once extended producer responsibility (EPR) frameworks are enforced, “we will see a shift in monetization because all waste packaging companies and brand owners will be required by law to contribute to the collection and recycling of the waste.”

The corporate push: “The demand is super high from all the international brand owners as they have this as a global mandate,” Dawar’s CEO Amr Fathi says. However, “local brand owners are still in the awareness phase,” but that is expected to shift as EPR takes hold, he adds.

To capture this corporate demand, the sector is shifting its focus toward tracking waste data. In a major consolidation move, Dawar has recently acquired a strategic stake in BekyaPay to link direct household inputs into its broader, traceable value chain, according to a statement (pdf).

DATA POINT- Following the acquisition, Dawar now boasts a registered operational network spanning 22 governorates and has traced over 90k verified tons of waste over the past three years. Through its trading arm, it targets 5k tons of PET and 10k tons of cardboard monthly. Meanwhile, Bekya Pay brings in over 30k registered users and collects approximately 40 tons of recyclables per month across 500 dark stores.

Your top green economy stories for the week:

  • Eni announced a new gas discovery at the Denise W 1 exploration well in Egypt’s Temsah concession, with preliminary estimates pointing to around 2 tcf of gas and 130 mn barrels of condensate. While smaller than Zohr, the find is still significant and could help reduce Egypt’s energy import bill, especially as its proximity to existing infrastructure may allow for fast-tracked production.
  • Egypt is pursuing a dual-track energy strategy that combines record gas imports with ambitions to become a regional export hub, Oil Minister Karim Badawi said. While imports are helping meet domestic demand and avoid blackouts, they are also keeping LNG infrastructure operational as Egypt positions itself to re-export gas from Cyprus and Israel alongside future increases in local production.
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