two young refugee entrepreneurs from egypt posing with their decoration products

With ILO’s support refugee brothers build their dream business in Egypt

By providing access to business development training and financial support, the ILO PROSPECTS programme in Egypt supported Mustafa and Muqueem, Syrian brothers and refugees in Egypt to start their own business and even generate employment.

22 May 2024

two refugee entrepreneurs from egypt showing their decorative products — El Husseiny brothers at the prestigious Torathna Fair, in Egypt showcasing their decoration products.

Cairo, EGYPT (ILO News) - The journey of Mustafa and Muqeem Ahmed El Husseiny from refugees fleeing war in Syria to becoming thriving entrepreneurs in Egypt presents a story of perseverance and resilience. Their journey highlights the profound impact of the Partnership for improving prospects for forcibly displaced persons and host communities (PROSPECTS) programme in shaping lives of forcibly displaced and their hosts.

Eleven years ago, the El Husseiny brothers arrived in Egypt with little more than a strong sense of determination and their own dreams for the future. In the early years, they worked in a small café in Damietta, which was a tiring job but helped them make ends meet. Their search to learn new skills and earn a better living led them to finding jobs with an interior design manufacturing unit in the city. From providing help to different craftspeople in the business, they eventually learned the art of crafting silicon moulds and developing unique decorative products.

While their wages began to improve, Mustafa and Muqeem knew that their earning potential as employees would always be limited. Therefore, by putting aside savings, in 2019 they took the courageous step to start their own interior design manufacturing business in Alexandria, putting to good use everything that they had learned on the job.

“We had invested a sizeable amount in renting space and buying machinery. However, the business did not pick up for months and we had to manage our costs. We had little knowledge of running a business and had to support a family of 8 of us together. We sometimes wondered if we had made a mistake by leaving our jobs,” said Mustafa.

Artisan painting decoration product — Muqueem providing finishing touches to a decorative product at his workshop

A pivotal moment came when a friend told them about a training programme on business development being offered by the ILO (the Gender and Entrepreneurship Together programme, GET Ahead). The training was part of the ILO PROSPECTS Egypt programme which, together with its partner organization Caritas-Alexandria, supports host and refugee entrepreneurs to develop their businesses with the aim of improving the local economy and generating decent jobs.

Shrouk Ahmed, Project Coordinator at Caritas-Alexandria, explained: “It is not easy for refugees and even people from vulnerable host communities to find the courage to start their own business. Often access to finance is a major challenge, as is networking. We were both amazed and inspired by Mustafa and Muqeem’s initiative. They were genuinely committed to do everything they could to set up a successful business.”

The El-Husseiny brothers attended the five-day GET Ahead training programme and soon realized that they needed to revise their strategies of costing, inventory and financial management. The programme includes modules on business management, as well as soft skills development like negotiation skills, communication and decision-making. They were also provided with a Financial support of EGP 9,000 (approximately US$300). In discussion with the trainers and Caritas officials, the brothers were able to adapt and apply a new business strategy.

"After applying the learning from the training to our business model, our profits doubled," said Mustafa and Muqeem."We learned how to manage our finances more accurately and properly document expenses and revenues. The technical expertise and the cash Financial support we received through the PROSPECTS programme allowed us to expand our business. We even hired more workers and we now have Sudanese, Syrian and Egyptian employees."

artisan holding a decorative product in hand — Mustafa proudly showing a finished decorative product.

The brothers’ journey demonstrates that refugees can significantly contribute to the economic growth of their host communities. Amr, an Egyptian who has been working with them for the past five years, expressed his gratitude, saying: "They taught me everything and helped me become a skilled craftsman. They were patient with me as I learned."

Another employee, Yamen, a young Syrian-Palestinian, shared the broader impact of their venture saying: "Thanks to the work opportunity provided by Mustafa and Muqeel, I am now able to save and send money to support my family in Syria. "

A milestone for the El Husseiny brothers was their participation in the Torathna Fair, organized by the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA). This event gave them a platform to showcase their meticulously crafted products. The prestigious exhibition organized every year in Egypt promotes the national heritage.

"We were honoured to be part of the Torathna Fair where we had the privilege of showing off our work to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. We were also able to meet more customers and retailers and our sales were beyond expectations. It was only possible because the ILO nominated us for the event. We are grateful that we had this opportunity and deeply appreciate the support the ILO has given us to make our business successful,” said Mustafa and Muqeem.

vendors showing their decorative product to customers — Customers appreciating Mustafa and Muqueem's stall at Egypt's Torantha Fair in Egypt

The brothers now aspire to expand their business by establishing their own gallery where they can exhibit and sell their products. The enterprise development component of the ILO PROSPECTS programme has supported a number of successful businesses through its business development services, including how to start and manage a business, business management skills, legal advice, marketing and e-commerce.

Amir Obeid, Programme Manager for ILO PROSPECTS Egypt, stated: “The ILO encourages entrepreneurship development as a way of improving social cohesion between host and refugee communities. Mustafa and Muqeem have set an incredible example of how refugees can contribute to local economies and generate jobs for other refugees and members of host communities, strengthening inter-community relationships. With the generous support of the Government of the Netherlands, the ILO PROSPECTS partnership will continue to invest in supporting these entrepreneurs, providing them with necessary skills, technical expertise and access to finance to develop and sustain successful businesses.”

About PROSPECTS

PROSPECTS is a global partnership spearheaded by the Government of the Netherlands that aims to improve the access of host communities and forcibly displaced people to education, social protection, and decent work.

In this partnership, the ILO plays a key role in promoting decent work and focuses on strengthening local economic development and improving employability by equipping refugees and host communities with better and relevant skills to enter local labour markets and access enterprise development opportunities.