Meet The First Angel Investors Network in Upper Egypt: Nile Angels 

Just as the Techne Drifts arrived at the middle of their roadshow journey on Sunday, April 22^nd, marked at their start of the Upper Egypt Nile cruise beginning with Assiut, Mohamed Farouk Aly announced the launch of the Nile Angels, an Angel Network aiming to invest in promising, creative, early stage startups based in Upper Egypt starting this year.

"Next week we'll be opening a call for applicants on our website," Nile Angels' Chairman Ahmed Mahmoud tells Startup Scene ME. "We are looking for registered companies, with at least one year of market experience involved with agriculture, technology, and manufacturing," Mahmoud adds. The network of 10 Assiut-based investors has found great potential in Upper Egyptian entrepreneurs, who however lack guidance. "All the guidance available for entrepreneurs with this much potential is located in the capital city, miles away," he elaborates. "That is why investors in Assiut have decided to unite in Nile Angels to inject funds in startups across Upper Egypt."

With a generous support from the German development agency,  GIZ, the official launch announcement came during the network's participation in Techne Drifts, Egypt's entrepreneurial roadshow taking place between April 14^th and 29^th. The "Drifts" go across the Nile Delta and the Suez Canal, and are held at different universities in each city, while the Upper Egypt Drifts - currently happening in Assuit - is being undergone on a Nile cruise, gathering startups, speakers, investors and mentors on one deck.

"Throughout our roadshows since last year, we’ve uncovered bright minds that are aiming to cleverly utilize their cities’ resources and solve their most pressing issues," Techne Drifts' Founder Tarek El-Kady - who has also spearheaded the Techne Summit in Alexandria and Croatia - tells Startup Scene ME. "I believe that Nile Angels has launched at the right time to help support and nurture these young minds and their promising startups."

Techne Drifts have passed through the Delta cities of Tanta, Mansoura, Port Said, Suez, and the Upper Egyptian cities of Assiut, and now they're heading to Sohag, Luxor, and ending in Aswan. Events in each city are open to the public and free of charge. According to Techne's website, this year’s agenda is not one-size-fits-all; it has been designed to cater to different customer segments within each governorate’s target audience.

Main photo: Courtesy of Techne Drifts.