During Dr. Mohieldin’s participation in the ministerial roundtable titled “Investing in the Builders of Tomorrow: Entrepreneurship as Financing for Development in the Age of Artificial Intelligence,” held as part of the Ninth World Investment Forum, organized by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Doha from 25 to 27 October 2026, Dr. Mahmoud emphasized that the challenge goes beyond establishing startups. Rather, it lies in building ecosystems that provide access to affordable financing, technology, and markets, enabling entrepreneurial initiatives to translate into productive capacity, job creation, and local value addition.
He noted that the financing gap for formal micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in emerging markets stands at $5.7 trillion, alongside an additional $2.1 trillion in unmet financing demand among informal enterprises, according to the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Regarding artificial intelligence, Dr Mohieldin warned against the concentration of technological capabilities and investments in a limited number of countries.
He stressed that addressing the financing gap requires developing an integrated ecosystem that aligns financing instruments with the needs of enterprises, reduces the cost of capital and financing risks, and strengthens domestic and regional investment. He also underscored the importance of linking entrepreneurship to industrial development, markets, and value chains, while expanding digital infrastructure, facilitating technology transfer, and building capacities, taking into account the differing needs and fiscal capacities of developing countries.
Dr Mohieldin called for stronger international cooperation through a practical policy framework for entrepreneurship in the age of artificial intelligence, linking investment partnerships to concrete projects and measurable outcomes. He emphasized that success should not be measured by the number of startups established, but rather by improvements in productivity, exports, decent job creation, and local value addition, as well as their contribution to achieving sustainable development.
