The Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade hosted a high-level meeting to discuss the executive framework of Egypt’s foreign direct investment (FDI) strategy. The meeting reflects the state’s direction of moving from strategic planning to integrated implementation, while strengthening coordination between economic and sectoral policies in support of sustainable development goals and the competitiveness of the Egyptian economy. The meeting was attended by Mohamed Farid, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade; Khaled Hashem, Minister of Industry; Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance; Ahmed Rostom, Minister of Planning and Economic Development; Hassan Raddad, Minister of Labour; Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities; representatives from relevant ministries; and a high-level delegation from the World Bank Group. Government Cooperation and Integrated Implementation The Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade stressed that the strategy represents a comprehensive framework reflecting the outcome of extensive work undertaken over the past period with the participation of various ministries and relevant entities. He praised the level of government cooperation and integration involved in its preparation. He added that the current phase requires government coordination to identify priority sectors for promotion, improve policies for attracting foreign direct investment, and move from the theoretical framework to practical implementation. This will be achieved through establishing a clear path for monitoring, evaluation, and continuous coordination with all stakeholders—foremost among them the Information and Decision Support Centre—to ensure integrated verification and alignment of sectors and competitiveness methodologies. Farid explained that the ministry had prepared the final version of the executive action plan in cooperation with the World Bank Group and relevant national entities. In the coming period, intensive technical meetings will be held to review the proposed sectors, discuss their strategic opportunities, and determine mechanisms for implementation within an integrated framework linking policies, reforms, and promotion tools. He stressed that the objective is to produce an updated and practically applicable implementation document, on the basis of which two versions will be prepared: one in Arabic and another for publication and the official launch of the strategy. The Minister also emphasized that the preparation of the FDI strategy and its executive framework is consistent with the requirements of the Supreme Council for Investment, chaired by the President of the Republic. World Bank Presents Integrated Framework for FDI Representatives of the World Bank Group presented the strategy’s executive framework, explaining that it is based on an integrated methodology combining economic data analysis, FDI indicators, global value chain studies, and extensive consultations with government entities, the private sector, and international organizations. They explained that the framework was developed through three main pillars: defining strategic objectives, building clear and measurable implementation pillars, and identifying priority sectors according to a methodology that combines sector attractiveness, competitive viability, and alignment with the state’s development objectives. They noted that the work relied on a combination of quantitative and qualitative data, including investment indicators, economic complexity analysis, trade and investment data, as well as extensive consultations with ministries and the business community, to ensure the realism and accuracy of the findings. The World Bank delegation added that the proposed sectors include those with high added value and strong export opportunities. However, the list remains under continuous consultation with the Egyptian government before a final decision is taken, to ensure alignment with state priorities and development plans. They also explained that the coming period will witness intensive engagement by World Bank teams, in cooperation with Egyptian ministries, to complete technical consultations, develop implementation frameworks, link them to supporting policies and reforms, and establish monitoring and impact assessment mechanisms to ensure effective implementation. The presentation highlighted the importance of focusing on institutional capacity-building, developing data systems, enhancing targeted investment promotion, and linking investment to structural reforms in the business environment—all of which would contribute to strengthening the global competitiveness of the Egyptian economy. Industry Ministry Updates Export Strategy to 2030 For his part, the Minister of Industry explained that the Ministry of Industry recently updated Egypt’s industrial strategy, which aims to increase industrial exports to $100bn by 2030. The strategy identifies seven priority industries based on comprehensive criteria and standards, in addition to a number of enabling, strategic, and complementary industries. Hashem stressed the importance of ensuring that the FDI strategy is based on genuine integration between industrial and investment policies, in order to direct investments towards high value-added productive sectors and strengthen the competitiveness of Egyptian industry in regional and international markets. He noted that the success of attracting investments is not linked solely to identifying target sectors, but also to the readiness of the supporting industrial environment, including the availability of industrial land, simplified procedures, and the development of local supply chains, which contribute to deepening local manufacturing and increasing domestic content in production. He added that the coming period requires greater coordination among relevant entities to ensure consistency between industrial policies and the objectives of the strategy, with a focus on attracting quality investments in advanced and technology-based industries, thereby supporting the state’s plans for industrial transformation, export growth, and sustainable development. The Minister of Finance stressed the importance of enhancing the quality and scope of economic data to reflect the true size of the Egyptian economy, highlighting the need to develop financial disclosure systems and improve data collection mechanisms to ensure the accuracy of FDI indicators. Kouchouk explained that maximizing the benefits of data requires improving institutional efficiency and linking data systems to fiscal policies, enabling more accurate and effective decision-making. He also stressed the importance of integration between government entities to ensure policy coherence and improve resource allocation efficiency. Planning Ministry: Building Sustainable Data Systems In a related context, the Minister of Planning and Economic Development stressed the importance of developing the institutional infrastructure of data collection systems and analytical methodologies to ensure the sustainability of the system and its capacity for continuous improvement. Rostom highlighted the need to integrate risk management into the design of the strategy and to link sector assessments to their ability to adapt to crises, while supporting sectors with strong competitive advantages. He also emphasized the importance of enhancing integration between different sectoral policies and linking them to the investment and planning framework to maximize the utilization of available resources. Labour Ministry: Linking FDI with Employment Strategy For his part, the Minister of Labour stressed that the executive framework of the FDI strategy, currently under discussion with World Bank representatives, is of significant importance in light of global economic developments. He emphasized the need for it to be integrated with the National Employment Strategy recently launched by the ministry, as a national framework linking training, employment, economic development, and social development. Raddad explained that the ministry supports investment and investors through capacity-building, employment services, incentives, and the creation of a decent and investment-friendly working environment, while ensuring job security and compliance with international labour standards. He noted that the National Employment Strategy to 2030 aims to create around 1.4 million jobs annually by fostering an investment-friendly labour environment, directing investments towards labour-intensive sectors, developing young people’s skills, and linking education and training to labour market needs. He added that successful investment depends on the existence of an organized labour market and a supportive legislative environment, stressing that training, employment, capacity-building, and investment are interconnected pathways that contribute to attracting investments and transforming them into real job opportunities, thereby supporting sustainable development and improving citizens’ quality of life. Tourism Ministry: Strengthening Sector Resilience and Competitiveness Meanwhile, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities stressed the importance of establishing a unified and clear architecture for the data collection system from the earliest stages, covering the methodologies, models, and systems underpinning data collection and management processes, while ensuring their gradual and continuous development to suit the nature of each sector. Fathy pointed out that assessing sector resilience should take into account Egypt’s experience of rapid recovery from crises, particularly in the tourism sector, which has demonstrated a strong ability to restore growth rates and maintain investment attractiveness despite exceptional global and regional challenges. He stressed that sector resilience does not depend solely on the nature of the sector itself, but also on the existence of an effective system for identifying, managing, and mitigating risks, thereby enhancing responsiveness to changing circumstances. He also explained that Egypt’s tourism sector possesses unique competitive advantages that support its sustainable growth. He noted that integrating advanced analytical tools and artificial intelligence technologies into Egypt’s tourism promotion strategy, alongside modern content distribution and marketing methods, has strengthened Egypt’s competitiveness in international markets. This ensures the targeting of the most suitable source markets and audience segments, maximizes returns from promotional campaigns, and supports sustainable growth in tourist arrivals and tourism revenues. He added that expanding hotel capacity remains a priority in order to achieve Egypt’s target of welcoming 30 million tourists annually by 2030, through expanding different accommodation models—including the introduction of holiday homes—as well as developing investment incentives linked to implementation speed and adherence to national priorities, alongside promoting environmental sustainability and energy efficiency. He concluded by stressing the need to attract further investment and improve the business environment to support the growth of the tourism sector and enhance its contribution to the national economy. Cross-Ministerial Partnership to Enhance Policy Integration Representatives from several ministries also stressed the importance of partnership and government integration in coordinating economic policies, in a manner that strengthens the competitiveness of the Egyptian economy and enhances its ability to attract investment. They highlighted the importance of redefining the concept of investment promotion to make it more closely linked to Egypt’s development vision and more consistent with the objectives of various ministries, thereby improving the investment environment and directing investment towards priority sectors. They also emphasized the need to identify priority sectors according to scientific methodologies that take sustainable development goals into account, while providing a supportive environment of integrated policies and reforms involving all government entities. It was further confirmed that the World Bank had proposed a number of priority sectors, while consultations with the government continue to finalize the list, paving the way for the formulation of supporting policies and reforms, alongside the launch of promotion programs, monitoring mechanisms, and impact assessments. Participants added that the coming period will witness joint efforts between the World Bank and several ministries to complete the implementation framework and ensure the rapid translation of the strategy into tangible results on the ground. The Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade concluded the meeting by stressing the importance of the extensive discussions held between the various ministries and the World Bank Group, noting that the next phase will involve intensive work on technical reviews and institutional coordination. He expressed his appreciation for the participation of all ministers, stressing that the primary objective is to strengthen government integration and transform the strategy into a practical and implementable action plan that supports the national economy, increases FDI inflows, and achieves sustainable development goals. Farid also confirmed that the Ministry of Investment will continue to play its coordinating and supportive role with all ministries to ensure that the final document reflects the Egyptian state’s vision and strengthens its position as a competitive investment destination at both the regional and international levels. The post Egyptian government discusses executive framework for FDI strategy with World Bank first appeared on Dailynewsegypt.
