A sit down with some of the Smart Green Projects initiative finalists:It has been more than six months since Egypt’sSmart Green Projects Initiative(SGP) went live, shining a light on 18 of the most promising green projects the country has to offer. Now, as the initiative gears up for round two, we check in with a few of the projects recognized in the first iteration of the program and find out whether the SGP is making a difference.

The SGP: A primer. In the lead-up to last year’s COP27 summit, the Planning Ministry unveiled the SGP initiative — a call for large, medium-sized, and small-scale domestic projects, startups, nonprofit community initiatives and activities, and gender-related and sustainability-focused projects that aim to make the country greener using tech solutions. The projects need to check six boxes, ensuring they’re both green and tech-driven, they’re economically feasible and scalable, and that they deliver on sustainability and empowerment metrics. The government whittled down more than 6k applicants to just 18 (pdf), which received cash prizes and traveled to COP27 to present their ideas to investors.

The SGP also helps projects unlock a wider net of support: The selected projects receive backing not only from the government — via the Planning Ministry and local authorities — but also from a number of financial institutions. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank, the UN and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as well as a number of local banks, with technical support, training, and business advisory services.

ENTERPRISE SPOKE TO SOME OF THE FINALISTS-

#1- The Egyptian Waste Bank: “The project aims to connect all the parties involved in waste management from the waste source to its final destination — be it destruction or recycling,” founder Atta Gad Al Kareem Mahmoud told Enterprise. “We offer an integrated digital platform, offering waste management services at all times and in all places.” The project aims to integrate informal waste workers into the formal system, granting them benefits and ins. It will also launch its own digital platform allowing households to earn in return for their recyclable waste. “A five-person family can make up to EGP 1k a month from their recyclable waste,” he said.

Enter the SGP: “We wouldn’t have been able to carry out the project without the government’s support,” Mahmoud said, name checking the Local Development Ministry, which is the state entity responsible for waste management. Support offered through the initiative will enable the project to expand its footprint, he said. “We first want to test out the project in Luxor for a few months before rolling out the same model in the rest of the country.”

#2- Bab Rizq Junk: The project first started when a few years back silver and gold prices started increasing, and founder Wehad Samir had to find another way to keep her jewelry business going. “I started using silver cutlery and transforming it into jewelry pieces … and silver cutlery became hard to find so I started looking at everything else — an old teapot, nails and bolts, and old computer hardware,” Samir said. She also expanded her umbrella, instead of just creating jewelry, to create clothing and home decor pieces.

How the SGP helped: “I got a full ride scholarship from the UN Women to study digital marketing between the American University in Cairo and an institute in the US,” she said, adding that the initiative also helped put her and her project on the map and is currently working to secure funding.

#3-Engazaat’s land reclamation project: Launched in 2011, “Engazaat is Egypt’s first full utility company,” cofounder Muhammad El Demerdash told us. “We deliver water, energy, and utilities to different sectors from sustainable sources,” he said. The company’s land reclamation project, the Sustainable-Agro-Village and Entrepreneurship Park (SAVE), was one of the 18 selected by SGP. “We receive a deserted piece of land and handle the design, building, finances, and utilities to then deliver it to the farmer a piece of land that they can use for production,” El Demerdash said. SAVE began commercial operations during COP27.

The SGP + EBRD provided support: “We are in the growth stage, and one of the challenges we faced was regarding how to manage their growth in a sustainable way … the EBRD was involved in the advisory capacity on how to support our growth with consultancy schemes and support packages that would help take us to the next level,” El Demerdash told us, adding that the SGP initiative helped raise awareness of the project among potential stakeholders. “The project had to overcome cultural, social, and regulatory barriers to deliver on an existential challenge … when the government recognized our project and what we did it helped change the trajectory of our project,” he said.

#4- Eco Greeno’s Ekbesni: Ekbesni (Compress Me) envisions launching a fleet of vehicles capable of compressing plastic on the go, founder Maged El Halafawy told Enterprise. The vehicles would pick up the waste in return for a financial reward and take it to a recycling facility. Initially the vehicles ran on gas and the compressor was powered by solar panels, but the company is now working on replacing the vehicles with EVs. “The compressor is ready, we’re done with its specs and engineering design and now we’re working on producing our electric vehicle, which will be made using local components,” El Halafawy said.

How the SGP helped: The initiative enabled the company and its project get exposure to the market due to its presence at COP27, said El Halafawy. “We didn’t really get funding, We just received the [EGP 250k] prize but other than that the project is entirely self-funded,” he clarified.

** In next week’s Going Green: Applicants to SGP 2.0 have only a few days to get their bids in. In next week’s Going Green, we look at the second iteration of the SGP and what projects need to do to apply before the deadline at the end of this month.

Your top green economy stories for the week:

  • Vodafone Egypt will invest more than EGP 330 mn this year to operate its network using renewable energy sources.
  • Adani Group representatives were in town to discuss projects in the Suez Canal Zone, including renewable energy, logistics, and infrastructure.
  • Local renewable energy firm NoorNation was selected to join the PepsiCo MENAGreenhouse accelerator.
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