Country Report - Egypt - Games Industry Africa

The games industry in Egypt is deceptively larger than it is given credit for at larger. According to a report by Niko Partners, it estimated the games market across Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt to be worth $1.76 billion in 2021.

Of the three aforementioned countries, Egypt was the country that accounted for the most gamers in 2021 (58.7% of the total across the three territories).

The Investor Perspective

Based on its geographical proximity to Europe and the MENA region, Egypt comes wiht a host of investment possibilities. Trufla website presents a list of some of the best reasons to invest in the country, which can be seen below:

Competitive Market Wages

Egypt is one of the most competitive markets when it comes to average wages. With all the education and high skills its workers have, it is safe to say that the labour market in Egypt offers incredible value for money.

The minimum monthly wage in Egypt is 2,400 EGP, which is 7.5 times lower than the minimum monthly wage in the USA (1160 USD). Of course, monthly wages vary depending on the field of work. Technology-related jobs in Egypt get paid much more, yet still a lot less than the rest of the world.

An IT professional earns an average of 10,000 EGP per month (635 USD). The lowest average is 5,000 EGP (320 USD), while the highest is 15,000 EGP (955 USD). The maximum wage can be higher depending on the years of experience.

Skilled Young Population

The labour market in Egypt welcomes more than half a million new professionals every year, which is an exceptional potential for any foreign investment.

The relatively young labour market gave Egypt an edge during the peak of the global lockdown. Most of the companies operating in Egypt went remote instantly with no reported issues. On the contrary, many local studies concluded that business productivity was boosted due to the spread of work from home policies nationwide. The skilled young market was familiar with modern technology and had a smooth transition. No wonder why Egypt has 200,000 offshoring jobs in the ICT market with an export volume exceeding 4.7 billion USD.

Strong Education System

Egypt has more than 50 accredited universities and 100 technical institutes. The undergraduate education system is standing on solid ground and bringing out 500,000 graduates annually. Of those graduates, 330,000 can provide business process services, and 50,000 have IT-related skillsets.

Government educational initiatives also add a lot to the market (for example, Next Technology Leaders). These initiatives offer free-of-charge grants, targeting 16,000 university graduates and covering trending technology fields, such as machine learning, data science, and cybersecurity.

Besides that, Egypt’s Ministry of Communications announced its target to train 115,000 fresh graduates in technology-related fields. The announcement stated that 400 million Egyptian pounds have been allocated for that purpose in 2021.

Advanced Infrastructure

Several measures have been taken to upgrade the internet and electricity networks. Internet cables have been upgraded to 60 Tbps capacity, and electricity is waiting for the first nuclear power plant to operate in El-Dabaa city by 2026. Egypt has also built 54 fully equipped technology hubs to offer workspaces, facilities and support for startups.

The cherry on top of all the ongoing projects would be the New Administrative Capital. Holding the tallest tower in Africa and being fully smart, the megacity would change the future of Egypt after its opening in 2022.

Blooming Startup Ecosystem

Ecosystem Egypt has the most emerging startup ecosystem in the Middle East and Africa. In 2019, Egyptian startups raised 140 million USD as per the African Tech Startup Funding Report. This amount represents 28% of the 492 million USD raised in the same year by all the African startups combined.

According to recent statistics, more than 73% of Egyptians think entrepreneurship is a good career choice. This explains why the market is leaning towards working in newly founded startups.

Events and Community

Arabic Games is an initiative to push the gamedev scene in the MENA region, by doing joint events like a conference and shedding light on local games and communities. Despite its focus on the Middle East, it does highlight a lot of the talents from North Africa and features developers and speakers from the region.

The Insomnia Egypt Gaming Festival 2022, the largest gaming event in the country, took place February 17–19 in Cairo. The Insomnia Gaming Festival originated in the UK and this year marked the 3rd time it was held in Egypt. The festival allows gamers to try out the latest video games, compete in esports tournaments, take part in contests, and more. Niko Partners had a superb write up of the most recent event.