Star Venture, the European Bank's boost for Moroccan companies
The Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has announced the launch of the second package of its Star Venture project, with which it intends to continue promoting the growth of companies in the southern and eastern Mediterranean. On this occasion, Morocco is one of the main beneficiaries, with the aim of including eight new companies based in the Alawi kingdom in the portfolio of corporations benefiting from EBRD support.
Star Venture's main objective is to provide both human and financial support. The programme provides a wide network of advisors, mentors and investors to guide young companies on an individual basis for a period of 18 months. The latest to have taken part in this initiative have shown their results with great improvements in various areas. Some of the companies are the ridesharing startup Pipip Yallah; Deepecho, a healthcare-oriented startup; and Weego, the sustainable mobility startup.
However, the scope of this programme is much broader. It covers various regions, with particular influence in the southern and eastern Mediterranean, including the aforementioned Alawi kingdom, Turkey, Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania, among others. Of all these countries, 350 companies are currently included in the EBRD's methodology, which aims, above all, to improve the operational efficiency of companies and enable them to grow rapidly.
In addition to announcing the entry of new companies into the project and presenting the results of those that are already part of it, the communiqué issued by the EBRD has invited new companies to apply to be one of the eight chosen. They can do so via the EBRD website until 24 September. Once the deadline has passed, a panel of experts will meet at an event organised by the Bank and it is expected that the eight new companies that will form part of the Star Venture will be known by the beginning of October.
In the same statement issued by the EBRD, they said they were proud to "provide essential support to promising Moroccan start-ups and contribute to Morocco's sustainable economic development". In this way, they make it clear how they value Morocco's business offer, which is becoming larger and, moreover, of higher quality, as these moves are showing.
The EBRD's good relationship with Rabat should not be forgotten, as the Bank decided to double its investment in the Kingdom in 2022. In a year as complicated as last year, in the midst of the energy crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EBRD reached EUR 530 million in investment, far exceeding the EUR 211 million set for 2021. A growth that left a "record" investment of 360 million euros earmarked for the private sector and another 170 million for boosting Morocco's green economy, one of the sectors in which they are making the greatest efforts to lead.
