Egypt has invested in its female labour force since the 1960s. Yet women-led businesses remain rare. Alia El Mahdi provides insight into the underlying challenges and gives policy recommendations for the effective promotion of female entrepreneurs.

Migrants and remigrants are especially likely to start their own businesses. But do they have the skills and knowledge that will allow them to access market niches and contribute to local economies?

Business training programs are a popular tool used by policy-makers to promote SME growth. However, recent evidence suggests that these programs rarely lead to firm growth or job creation. What do we know about how to effectively support SME development?

After microfinance, the ‘missing middle’ is the new buzzword for SME development experts. Klaas Molenaar recommends to take a look into the history of microfinance to question the hype.