Dr. Mohamed Awad:
- Egypt and Italy have a real opportunity to elevate the economic partnership to broader and more impactful horizons.
As part of the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade’s (MIFT) efforts to strengthen economic and investment relations between Egypt and Italy and support partnerships between the business communities of the two countries, Dr. Mohamed Awad, CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), participated in the opening session of the Egyptian-Italian Business Forum, held under the theme “The Mattei Plan for Africa: Partnerships and Institutional Support Mechanisms to Strengthen the Egyptian-Italian Economic Partnership”. The session brought together a distinguished group of senior officials and representatives of the business community, as well as financial and investment institutions from both the Egyptian and Italian sides.
Dr. Mohamed Awad affirmed that Italy is an important trade and investment partner for Egypt, noting that there is a real opportunity to advance the economic relations between the two countries from a strong partnership to an even stronger and more impactful one, in a manner that serves their mutual interests and supports growth and investment in both countries.
He explained that the Egyptian Government has placed improving the investment climate and enhancing the role of the private sector at the forefront of its priorities. It is working to establish a more accessible, transparent, competitive, and stable business environment through legislative and institutional reforms, digital transformation, streamlined procedures, and the facilitation of trade flows.
GAFI CEO noted that Egypt offers a diverse range of investment incentives and regimes, including free zones, investment zones, and special economic zones, in addition to the “Golden License”, providing investors with more flexible and expedited solutions for implementing their projects.
Dr. Mohamed Awad affirmed that Egypt’s investment attractiveness is not limited to incentives, but also extends to its strategic location, market size, developed infrastructure, human capital, and access to regional markets. He explained that the development of ports, transport networks, and logistics services, coupled with the availability of skilled labor at competitive costs and an extensive network of trade agreements, strengthens Egypt’s ability to play a pivotal role as a regional hub for manufacturing, services, and supply chains, as well as a gateway to the markets of Africa and the Middle East.
He pointed out that the restructuring of global supply chains presents important opportunities for Egypt and Italy to build more integrated industrial partnerships and more efficient and sustainable value chains. He noted that there are promising opportunities for cooperation across a number of sectors, foremost among them manufacturing, engineering and automotive industries, textiles and spinning, food industries and agro-processing, renewable energy and green hydrogen, chemicals, and building materials.
Dr. Mohamed Awad noted that the “Mattei Plan for Africa” represents an important framework for deepening cooperation between Egypt and Italy, not only in the field of investment, but also in technology transfer, sustainable development, and the establishment of projects that generate shared added value. He underscored the importance of leveraging the initiative to strengthen economic and investment partnerships between the two sides.
He stated that the objective is to move from opportunities to projects, from projects to production, and from production to new markets, growth, and job opportunities, thereby strengthening economic integration between Egypt and Italy and enhancing the competitiveness of companies in regional and international markets.
He affirmed GAFI’s commitment to serving as a genuine partner to Italian investors, starting from identifying investment opportunities and establishing projects, through operation and expansion, while working to address any challenges that may face their investments. This would enhance the sustainability of Italian investments in the Egyptian market and support the attraction of additional new investments.
Dr. Mohamed Awad concluded by affirming that Egypt views its partnership with Italy as a strategic partnership with significant potential for further growth and expansion. He noted that the next phase aims to build on the cooperation achieved to date and open new horizons for investment and industrial partnerships, thereby boosting production and exports and supporting integration between Egypt, Italy, and African markets.
