15 THINGS WE LEARNED ABOUT THE STARTUP
MANIFESTO, POWERED BY RISEUP

We spoke with some of the entrepreneurs and experts in the ecosystem who have been working
to pull off a directory of records detailing the “grounded experiences” of Egyptian startups.

Entrepreneurs of the world, unite! You have got nothing to lose but brain drain. Every transformation needs a
manifesto, and there is no doubt Egypt’s ecosystem is experiencing a vigorous shuffle; with the influx of fresh blood
challenging the status quo. People are diverting their attention to settling in a risky work environment, such as a
startup’s, as opposed to signing contracts for more secure jobs in the corporate world.

However, to save this transformation from going down the drain, it needs some organising. And that’s where the
Startup Manifesto steps in. In August 2017, the project was initiated by RiseUp to put data and figures in order to
better connect members of the ecosystem.



We spoke with the partakers of this Manifesto, such as ElMaqarr’s Abdel Qader Khaled who has been building his
company together with his co-founders since 2012. “We haven’t had a similar chance to voice our needs in an
essential way that could actually create progress, reassess policies, or change the landscape of entrepreneurship,”
he tells Startup Scene. “I feel it’s an honour to be part of this Manifesto and I can see that this initiative is here to last
, and is here to make a big difference.”

2. Why does the ecosystem need a Manifesto?
The startup ecosystem in Egypt is fairly fragmented resulting in various entities and participants working towards
the same goal yet not together and using different forms and methods, according to Amr Hareedy from Levari, a full-
service international law firm in Cairo that has a subsidiary called The Legal Clinicsupporting the Manifesto.
“When the Manifesto was introduced it gave the call to action for everyone to come together and work together towards
that goal,” says Hareedy. “We, as The Legal Clinic, stepped up to that call and took our role in supporting this great
initiative.” Since participating, The Legal Clinic has seen key players join this initiative, entities and participants joining
forces, discussing ideas and really working towards the same goal together.

3. What is it exactly?
The Startup Manifesto is a document that provides an overview of challenges faced by different stakeholders of the
ecosystem and suggests actionable solutions for everyone to work on based on insights and inputs from the
constituents of the ecosystem, meaning that those working on impacting change are the stakeholders of the network
themselves.
People can now download the Manifesto document in both Arabic and English directly from the website. The website
isn't only a tool to present the Startup Manifesto document, it will also be a tool for ecosystem data collection
through surveys. Moreover, the website is a channel for members of the ecosystem to share their thoughts,
experiences, and suggestions for solutions publicly.

SHARE TO

By: Leena ELDeeb
Editor of Startup Scene ME
December 1, 2018.

12. The Value?
“The biggest value in manifesto is the community itself,” Hoda Hammad of Almakinah tells Startup Scene.
“The Manifesto allows us to share knowledge with people and at the same time have someone to go back to from
similar-minded people. We sometimes come across problems that we have never encountered before in our
professional lives whether on the individual level or on the company level.”

Nodding to Hammad’s analysis, Abdelqader says that until now, it has been a journey of learning and getting to know
amazing people. “I’m learning about all the different issues people are facing, even if we’re not facing them in our
startup yet,” he says. “I’m getting to socialise and discuss with many stakeholders and seeing great areas of
collaboration with each. So far, I think I have gained much more than I gave to the Manifesto.”

13. What do startups give to the Manifesto?
Abdel Qader is part of AlMaqarr Coworking Space and ElRe7la; both startup founders are all part of the manifesto
committees either leading or participating in committees. “AlMaqarr hosts the manifesto committee meetings when
needed and ElRe7la works very closely with Manifesto team to co-facilitate the big meetups and retreats for the
ecosystem.”

The Manifesto is based on the insights and experiences of various members of the ecosystem; mostly depending on
the sector they are working with.

14. What is the Manifesto doing in RiseUp?
The Manifesto has so much planned for this year’s RiseUp Summit; from workshops, talks, to satellite events, the
Startup Manifesto and Summit integration will cover a wide spectrum of topics, from building a startup culture, to
financial alternatives, and all the way to localisation of content as part of grounded experiences.

15. Expansion The Manifesto acknowledges that Egypt’s startup ecosystem isn’t restricted to the one in Cairo.
“There are other smaller, less mature startup communities scattered around the country,” Sabry says. “They function
in unequipped ecosystems, leading to lower rates of growth. Geographical disparities are one of the main topics the
Manifesto document brings to the table.”

For the next chapter, the Manifesto will be working on embracing the larger ecosystem including Alexandria and
Upper Egypt – only as a start. Last August, they conducted a Manifesto roundtable in Alexandria.“We’ll be revisiting
Alexandria soon for more insights on challenges and opportunities of the region,” she elaborates. “We are also
planning for a bigger Upper Egypt roundtable just after the summit.”

All photos are from the Manifesto's retreat in Ain El-Sokhna with ElRe7la. Courtesy of Startup Manifesto.

8. Launch?
The Startup Manifesto will be launched in a separate pre-RiseUp Summit event. The day will witness the launch of the
Manifesto document, website and the entire initiative. This will mark the first time the Startup Manifesto would be
announced to the public, beyond the Manifesto community and the startup ecosystem as a whole. The launch will
include Egyptian key players in the ecosystem; explaining the importance of a Startup Manifesto for changing the
status quo, along with international experiences of other manifestos around the world.

The launch event promises to answer all questions about this collective endeavor. What worked? What didn't? Why
are startup coalitions important today? How can the ecosystem evolve and improve through collective action? “The
event is invitation-based, yet we aim to be as inclusive as possible by ensuring a comprehensive, diverse community
that will be able to take the Manifesto forward,” Saber explains.

9. Challenges?
As there will never exist a commonly agreed upon opinion or practice, one thing the members could agree upon is
that the ecosystem needs to be developed and geared towards its full potential, with the ultimate objective of
positioning Egypt as the entrepreneurship capital of the MENA region.

Having various stakeholders onboard, each with their distinct backgrounds and interests, working together towards
achieving the same agenda is certainly challenging, but remains doable, Saber contemplates.

“It shouldn’t be expected that partners within each programme will easily agree on common agendas and
measurements,” she says. “Indeed, this requires multiple meetings and discussions and dedication of time and effort
from all partners.”

10. How do people get on board?
The Manifesto is a collectiveimpact initiative. “Collective refers to being an inclusive initiative; inclusivity is a key pillar
of the Manifesto,” Saber explains “The startup Manifesto community has almost no entry barriers, ensuring every
voice in the ecosystem is heard.” The Manifesto is for everyone; one should just choose to join one or more of the 11
programme initiatives based on one’s expertise and interests.

11. Only startups?
Not only startups are welcome in this manifesto. Many corpo-governmental names are on board, such as GIZ, USAID,
The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA), and Nahdet El-Mahroussa are there.

Startups on board are Agrimatic, Furnwish, AlMakinah, Almaqarr, Wuzzuf, Publisict INC., Kijami, WeAccept, Yomken
dot com, and Chat Bosta. Entrepreneurial communities include RiseUp, ICE Alex, ElRe7la, Ahead of the Curve, The
Greek Campus, and Tafra. There are also entrepreneurial support systems such as Levari, Acumen Consulting, Water
Consulting, Cairo Angels and Nile University.

4. What is the backbone holding the Manifesto?
While the Manifesto’s support system is the entire startup landscape, however the members had their own
companies and teams to dedicate their time for. A solitary entity had to exist to ensure that the Startup Manifesto
achieves its ultimate objectives by building and ensuring coherence and transparency. This entity, or backbone, is the
Startup Manifesto team, composed of two young women; Ghada Saber and Aliaa Abd ElAziz.

Saber has just graduated from Faculty of Economic Studies and Political Sciences, University of Alexandria, but has
been working at RiseUp for a year and a half now; first as intern, then a part-timer, and started full timing just last
July. “I joined RiseUp as a research intern on a completely different project, but the Manifesto grabbed my attention
since day one,” she tells Startup Scene. “I started helping out on small tasks, and ended up co-authoring the Startup
Manifesto, and got my title as the Project Associate of the Startup Manifesto in October 2017.”

As a student, Saber tried every possible career choice from research, to banking and all the way to finance and stock
exchange. During college, she published a research paper on the importance of SMEs to the Egyptian Economy in
the annual economic conference at Bibliotheca Alexandrina.

Abd ElAziz also studied Economics and is now holding a Masters degree in Economics from the American University
in Cairo with a published thesis focused on children’s educational attainment in Egypt. “Right after I graduated, I
joined RiseUp and worked as Collaborations Manager at RiseUp’14,” she tells Startup Scene. Abd ElAziz wanted to
explore the corporate life whilst doing her Masters, so she worked as a marketer in a multinational
telecommunications operator. After that, she wanted to experience the development sector, so she joined a well
reputed NGO as Project Manager.

“Currently, I am leading the Startup Manifesto Project at RiseUp, as I found my passion in serving startups and the
entrepreneurship ecosystem in Egypt,” she adds. “In addition to that, I am very passionate about fitness, and
currently hold an ISSA Strength and Conditioning Certification.”

The Manifesto is powered by RiseUp, yet the ownership is shared; it is a from—the-ecosystem-to-the-ecosystem
kind of thing.

5. Objective?
The Startup Manifesto has the ultimate objective of shaping policy for the benefit of the Egyptian entrepreneurship
ecosystem, according to the Manifesto team. As a roadmap for change, it targets to be a comprehensive but concise
overview of the current policy challenges the Egyptian ecosystem faces while proposing solutions to overcome them.
It aims to initiate a continuous dialogue between all relevant stakeholders while being the reference point for
corresponding reform.

6. More than a document?
“The Startup Manifesto doesn't stop at being a document;” says Saber. “It is a collective impact initiative that aims at
changing the status quo through collective impact (or multi-sectoral partnerships) to create real sustainable impact
towards a more developed startup ecosystem in Egypt.”

The Startup Manifesto is home to 11 programmes, each focusing on a specific area or challenge: Advocacy; Human
capital; Financial services; Offline/ online platforms; Mentorship and coaching; Decentralization and Localization;
Incubators; Support organizations; Impact investment and Purpose driven startups; Research and Data; Linkages.
Each programme has its own team of dedicated ecosystem players working collectively to change the status quo by
identifying action points, necessary for the development process, and collaborating towards achieving them.

Abdel Qader describes the Manifesto as a tool for the whole ecosystem to collaborate, putting personal and
subjective interests aside. “It’s a way to collaborate for the greater good,” he explains further. “This manifesto, if it
works well, can change the path of some industries and can make things much easier for people to start their own
businesses.”

The road to building up a company is raided with many obstacles, Abdel Qader argues. “I believe that addressing one
obstacle at a time can pave the way for healthier startups, saner startup founders, and definitely a better ecosystem.”

7. Previous events?
“Part of our responsibilities as the Manifesto team, is to maintain continuous communications
among the various stakeholders of the ecosystem,” Saber adds. “Communications isn’t for merely bringing the
ecosystem together by planning an event. Instead, by doing so, we aim to sustain the momentum of the initiative,
plan forward, and achieve real impact.”

So far, the Manifesto hosted some ecosystem gatherings review sessions: The review session took place at AlMaqarr
and AUC Tahrir. The sessions were organised for key ecosystem players to go over the first draft of the Manifesto.
Attendees reviewed sections based on their experiences, and gave comments on points that should be added to or
removed from the document.

In May 2018, all members of the StartupManifesto went on a three-day retreat in Ain El-Sokhna with ElRe7la. After
the initial draft was modified through comments collected from the review sessions, it was time to move from
literature to real action. The three-day retreat witnessed the development of the 11 programme initiatives along
with their key action points or deliverables.

In Ramadan 2018, the Startup Manifesto hosted an Iftar on MO4’s now-known-as Unicorn Garden. The Iftar was an
opportunity to onboard more ecosystem members by joining or contributing to one of the Startup Manifesto
programmes.

Before officially (and publicly) launching, the Manifesto hosted an invite-only workshop on KARMSolar's rooftop in
Zamalek, featuring some keynote speeches and presentations by representatives such as KARMSolar’s CEO Ahmed
Zahran, RiseUp's CEO AbdelHameed Sharara and the rest of the core Manifesto team that has been inevitably
established during ElRe7la. Later that evening, the attendees split up into smaller circles, each representing one of
the 11 Manifesto programme initiatives.

1.Motivation