Planning Minister discusses with the Spanish Minister of Trade potential investment opportunities in Egypt

H.E. Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, discussed recently with Xiana Margarida Mendez Bertolo, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade investment opportunities in Egypt, and the Egyptian state’s efforts to support the private sector.
This came in the presence of the Spanish Ambassador to Egypt Alvaro Iranzo Gutierrez, Ana Vicente Lancho, deputy director general for Mediterranean countries, Africa, and the Middle East of the Secretary of State for Trade; Nada Masoud, Economic Advisor to the Minister of Planning, and Ayman Soliman, Executive Director of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE).
El-Said referred to the tasks of the Ministry of Planning, which are to develop long, medium, and short-term sustainable development plans, prepare the annual investment plan, evaluate the proposed investment projects for each party, determine the allocation of its investment plan, as well as diversify sources of funding for development plans.
El-Said explained that since the launch of Egypt’s Vision 2030, the government has focused on investing in several sectors to achieve sustainable and comprehensive development.
She further noted that the private sector plays an active role in development efforts and its contribution represents about 72% of the GDP and provides job opportunities at a rate of 78.4%.She said that the government prioritizes strengthening the role of the private sector in the Egyptian economy, as it is considered the cornerstone of stimulating sustainable and inclusive growth, pointing out that the focus in the coming period will be on directing long-term investments in key sectors such as renewable energy, water desalination, health, information, communications technology, and agricultural industries.
El-Said added that Egypt enjoys several unique competitive advantages, as it has a geographical advantage because it is relatively close to Africa and Europe.
Xiana Margarida Mendez Bertolo, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade investment asserted that Spain appreciates Egypt’s hosting of the climate conference and that there will be high-level participation in the twenty-seventh session of the United Nations Climate Conference (COP27). Regarding the ambitious goals related to financing to double investments in green projects, she said that Spain is interested in strengthening cooperation with Egypt regarding investment in green projects and renewable energy projects.
She added that Egypt is an important strategic partner for Spain, noting that cooperation between the two countries includes fields of economy and sustainable development, green economy, and renewable energy.
Xiana Margarida highlighted the promising investment opportunities in Egypt, especially in East Port Said, the Suez Canal, and Egypt’s New Administrative Capital.
  Xiana Margarida explained that Spain is interested to enhance cooperation with The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE), especially since it has many MoUs with several Arab sovereign funds.
For his part, Ayman Soliman, Executive Director of TSFE, gave an overview of the Egyptian Sovereign Fund, which was established in 2018 to attract investments to Egypt and encourage joint investment in state-owned assets to employ and manage them to achieve financial goals.The fund relies on investment strategies that include investing in foreign financial assets to increase their value and effectiveness for the Egyptian economy, according to Soliman.
 The fund seeks to select investable assets from various state agencies to promote and co-invest with local and foreign investors, in addition to increasing the role of the private sector in the economy and creating job opportunities for young people in Egypt.

Soliman explained that Egypt's sovereign fund succeeded in attracting investments worth $3.3 billion from Arab sovereign funds during the current year.

Soliman stressed that there is great interest on the part of international developers specialized in investing in green projects and choosing Egypt as a destination for investment in this field, due to its strategic location and renewable energy resources that enable it to transform into a regional center for green energy.