[BishoyDemian]

When I read the article, what immediately came to my mind (and was not mentioned by the way) is how this ecosystem is dealing with the corruption mess of such government(s)?

Finding funding, specially early stage seed fund, is very difficult in the first-world, not to mention it is almost impossible in a third-world country like Egypt (where I was born and lived most of my life), how is that being resolved?

Finally, I really wish to see the startup scene improving in my home country, this will develop a new generation of entrepreneurs that are willing to take the rotten bureaucracy for a ride and push to improve the governing policies.

[kerningcultures]

You're absolutely right, we didn't address corruption in this piece. Will make a note for future conversations, thanks for bringing it up! As for fundraising, it's really tough -- and as expressed by some of these entrepreneurs, they've had to look abroad for funding. Some new initiatives, like the Cairo Angels, have emerged and seeded the landscape with funds -- but they're a limited number, relative to the number of startups. We'll address a bit of this investor dynamic / aversion to risk in an upcoming episode on startups in Dubai; would love your thoughts on that, too!