Last year, the government and Central Bank launched three initiatives for 2020 to help boost healthy large and medium factories, firms near bankruptcy or bankrupt because of unpaid debts, and exporters. Industry insiders say the initiatives addressing three in a long list of problems. Often described by state officials as the “locomotive of Egypt’s economic recovery,” industrial investments not only create permanent jobs, they account for 48 percent of dollar inflows. Yet the sector was the first and hardest hit by the aggressive structural reforms since the pound was floated in late 2016, and the sector’s recovery has been lackluster…
Author: Tamer Hafez
After representing the U.S. government abroad for 34 years, Johnathan Cohen became ambassador to Egypt in November. Cohen is known in diplomatic circles as a deal broker, matching companies with U.S. interests with opportunities in countries where he served. “I believe in forging U.S. partnerships with countries and regions to expand mutually beneficial opportunities,” he said at an AmCham luncheon event January 28. During his brief presence in Egypt, Cohen witnessed the signing of a $430 million deal in late November between the government and Noble Energy to supply natural gas through the East Mediterranean Gas Co. pipeline. In December,…
Egypt’s food security has long been a concern. Last fiscal year (FY), the country imported more than half of its corn, rice, sugar and wheat, according to AmCham’s 2018 Egypt Economic Profile Report. Worryingly, that ratio has worsened. In 2014, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization estimated Egypt could supply 60 percent of its food needs. Even more concerning is the value of wheat and corn imports in FY 2018/2019 were nearly triple that of all packaged fresh food exports. To increase cultivation of fruits and vegetables, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi launched three megaprojects. The flagship initiative would boost the…
For Speed Medical, listing on the NileX was an important step to advance its core labs business as well as diversify to building hospitals. “We wanted to raise about EGP 46 million,” says company Chairman Mahmoud Lashin. However, he only raised EGP 21.16 million as the IPO was covered 0.46 times. “It wasn’t bad. But we put the majority of our post-listing plans on hold to determine our next step.” Ahead of the 2016 listing, Speed Medical had 52 medical labs in nine governorates. “We had treated 1.2 million patients in 2015 and were on track to receive 2 million…
A century and a half after Khedive Ismail Pasha hosted European royalty and financiers to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal, Egypt’s leadership is preparing gala events to showcase the Grand Egyptian Museum. Authorities have moved nearly 50,000 Pharaonic artifacts to the 120-acre facility scheduled to open in late 2020 and hope 4 million visitors a year will flock to the nation’s latest attraction. The state estimates a direct return on investment of $840 million, including nearly 6,000 new jobs in construction, transportation and manufacturing with the museum becoming the prime economic growth engine for the Giza Plateau. “Millions…
Ahmad Hafez, 37, the front desk manager at a well-known Sharm el Sheikh resort, has noticed a new pattern in his booking system since the start of year: Room occupancy rises dramatically for a few days, only to drop significantly in subsequent weeks. “It seems that every time there is an event in the city, occupancy rises dramatically,” he says, “then returns to below-average afterward.” Hossam el Helw, chairman of Safa Tours, on the other hand, has seen high occupancy rates throughout the year, especially in Alexandria. “There is a definite lack of ‘decent’ hotel rooms for tourists from Europe,”…
It was an inevitable decision for Ahmed el Rayes, a 31-year-old owner of El Rayes Limousine Services, to change his four-car fleet to natural gas instead of petrol. “With petrol now at EGP 8 per liter, my costs would have been impossibly high. Also, my usual clientele can’t afford another price increase,” says el Rayes. “The majority of my clients ride from Sheikh Zayed to Maadi or New Cairo. Therefore, any increase to the fare will translate to a huge amount of money.” He is not alone in converting his cars to natural gas after years of using petrol. According…
Mohamed Mourad relocated to 6 October City to escape the hustle and bustle of downtown Cairo, but the move has not turned out as the 33-year-old accountant planned. “I used to take one bus to work,” he says. “Now I have to take three.” Even worse, Mourad spends more than half his commute time waiting for buses. “If I arrive at the bus station 10 minutes late, I have to wait for 30 to 40 minutes for another one. For the first time in my life, I need to buy a car.” But for Mourad and countless other Egyptians, car…
It was an inevitable decision for Ahmed el Rayes, a 31-year-old owner of El Rayes Limousine Services, to change his four-car fleet to natural gas instead of petrol. “With petrol now at EGP 8 per liter, my costs would have been impossibly high. Also, my usual clientele can’t afford another price increase,” says el Rayes. “The majority of my clients ride from Sheikh Zayed to Maadi or New Cairo. Therefore, any increase to the fare will translate to a huge amount of money.” He is not alone in converting his cars to natural gas after years of using petrol. According…
Because of his budget constraints, it didn’t take long for Kamal Tawfik, a 35-year-old real estate broker, to decide on a new car, “I needed a midsize sedan that didn’t cost more than EGP 350,000 ($21,084),” he says. “I wanted a car that looked good and could last for seven years.” Only three cars met his criteria. The Opel Astra, a German car (EGP 315,000); the South Korean Kia Cerato (EGP 335,000 to 425,000) and the locally assembled Nissan Sentra (EGP 287,000 to 305,000). “It was a no brainer,” says Tawfik. “I chose the German car. The Opel had the…