Standard Chartered Foundation, in partnership with Entlaq and Village Capital, has launched the second edition of the Women in Tech Accelerator in Egypt, targeting women-led technology start-ups with proven market validation and ambitions to scale.
The 2026 cohort will support 12 technology-enabled start-ups through investment readiness training, business development support and tailored mentorship. At the end of the programme, three winners will receive equity-free grant funding totalling USD 35,000.
The programme will be delivered in Egypt by Entlaq, leveraging its experience in entrepreneurship support and ecosystem development. Participants will receive support designed to strengthen their business capabilities, expand professional networks, improve investment readiness and prepare their ventures for sustainable growth.
The initiative builds on the results of the programme’s first Egypt cohort, which attracted 240 applications and supported 11 start-ups through more than 35 training sessions and over 40 mentorship sessions and roundtables.
According to Village Capital, founders from the 2025 cohort collectively reached nearly 16,000 new customers, created more than 430 jobs and generated an additional USD 2.7 million in revenue.
The programme also responds to persistent funding and support gaps facing women entrepreneurs in Egypt. Entlaq’s Women in Entrepreneurship Report 2025 found that women-led start-ups continue to receive a relatively small share of venture funding, alongside an estimated USD 2.2 billion funding gap and limited access to specialised mentorship and professional networks.
Through the accelerator, the partners aim to translate these challenges into practical support by helping women founders develop more investment-ready, competitive and scalable businesses.
The Standard Chartered Women in Tech Accelerator has supported more than 4,000 women across 17 markets since its inception. In 2026, the programme has allocated more than USD 600,000 in grant funding to entrepreneurs across 12 markets.
For the Egypt cohort, three start-ups will compete for a combined USD 35,000 in equity-free cash prizes at Demo Day, providing additional capital to help the selected businesses advance their growth plans.
The initiative highlights the growing role of targeted entrepreneurship programmes in improving access to capital, mentorship and business networks for women founders while strengthening participation in Egypt’s technology and innovation economy
