The development of appropriate financial instruments, provision of financial resources and venture capital, and support for and strengthening of innovative operations and pioneering work are essential in order to facilitate the provision of innovative solutions and the creation in the ESCWA region of a knowledge-based economy. This study sheds light on the need to assign the highest priority to mechanisms for financing innovation, and identifies venture capital as one of the most important mechanisms for financing information and communications technology (ICT), with the focus on financing for high-risk leases or new establishments, and a description of their stages of growth.