Despite a funding decline, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) startup ecosystem showed resilience, with rising deal volumes and sectoral diversity, as MENA startups recorded $2.3 billion in investments in 2024, a 42% year-on-year (YoY) decline. However, excluding debt financing, the decline is just 11%. Despite the drop in value, the ecosystem saw growth in activity, with 610 deals marking a 3.5% YoY increase.

The UAE led the region with $1.1 billion raised across 207 startups, followed by Saudi Arabia ($700 million in 186 deals) and Egypt ($334 million in 84 deals). Oman rose to 4th place with $41.5 million, while Morocco and Tunisia led North Africa, raising $20.8 million and $13.1 million, respectively. Smaller ecosystems like Jordan, Qatar, and Lebanon showed modest growth but signalled long-term potential.

Fintech dominated with 30% of total funding ($700 million). SaaS excelled in Saudi Arabia, driven by its tech push, while Web 3.0 ($256.8 million) and e-commerce ($253 million) also performed well. Early-stage startups led investments, raising over $1.2 billion, while later-stage and pre-IPO rounds saw limited activity.

Female-founded startups raised just $27.6 million (1.2% of funding), though this marked progress from 2023. Startups co-founded by men and women secured $192 million, despite fewer deals.

The full report is available here