The first Egyptian-made handgun was produced at the Al-Harbi Factory on 23 October 1954, now set aside each year as Military Production Day. On the occasion of its 64th anniversary, it is worth shedding further light on the significant contributions the Ministry of Military Production has made to the Egyptian economy over the past four years in particular. The mission of the ministry is to act as a main source of armaments for the Egyptian Armed Forces as well as to contribute to the economy and participate in national development projects within the framework of the government's Egypt 2030 Vision. Main pillars include deepening domestic industrialisation, promoting the solid construction of government buildings and infrastructure and upgrading scientific research. The ministry is also affiliated to various scientific institutions including the Egyptian Academy for Engineering and Advanced Technology (EAEAT) under the supervision of the Ministry of Higher Education and the Science and Technology Centre of Excellence (STCE). There is also the Information Technology Centre that recently succeeded in constructing a database containing the IDs of around 80 million beneficiaries of the subsidy card programme in collaboration with the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade. The Ministry of Military Production has also played a critical role in overcoming challenges that have threatened social peace, especially in 2013-2014, by securing the needs of the local market for industrial products (for example, electrical and home appliances), exporting surplus production, developing the national economy, and deepening domestic industrialisation, as well as covering the needs of the Armed Forces. The services provided by the ministry have expanded over time to cover the production of civilian products as well as its main task of producing military ones, and this has allowed it to use its experience in military manufacturing to provide civilian products of high quality at reasonable prices. In the meantime, the ministry has also made significant contributions to attaining the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through comprehensive coordination with other ministries and government institutions in different sectors. Moreover, it has fostered partnerships with the private sector and the Federation of Egyptian Industries, the private sector constituting around 80 per cent of the Egyptian economy and being one of the main drivers of development. It is thus vital to foster cooperation between the private and the public sectors. Among the projects the Ministry of Military Production is working on today is the development of domestic production according to the highest international standards by boosting cooperation with major international companies as well as the domestic private sector. The intention is to benefit fully from their experiences and to bring about the real transfer of sophisticated technologies in order to improve quality and increase productivity. More competitive production value chains will foster the competitiveness of Egyptian exports and add to the success of import-substitution industrialisation (ISI). The ministry is also cooperating with the Ministry of Higher Education in applying contemporary scientific research and exploring the impact of new technologies on industrialisation as well as consolidating ties with international universities by academic exchange programmes that can assist in the transfer of advanced technologies and foster the Fourth Industrial Revolution. One result of the promotion of scientific research and the use of new technologies in industrialisation has been the production of new smart meters by Egyptian manufacturers and their use by the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy. The government is also supporting the manufacture of electric cars in Egypt that will be cheaper than imported ones and will contribute to boosting energy efficiency and conservation. Cooperation between the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Military Production has resulted in fostering the production of railway locomotives, and the ministries have set up a partnership with the Bombardier Company with a view to turning Egypt into a regional hub for the manufacture, repair, and export of locomotives and train engines to African, Arab and European countries. Bombardier has agreed to manufacture railway locomotives in ministry of military production factories and to set up a maintenance centre in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport and the Railway Authority. The Ministry of Military Production also collaborates with the ministries of the environment and of local development at their request to build technology strategies for development. It has helped establish the Egyptian Holding Company for Waste Recycling with three ministries in collaboration with the Misr Bank, the National Bank of Egypt and the National Investment Bank. It has set aside the Scientific Research Centre for Military Production in accomplishing this task with the collaboration of related authorities. Consolidating coordination between the various ministries, governorates, universities and other government institutions will lead to more successes in achieving sustainable development if these are considered to be a unified entity whose different parts complement each other. Their cooperation will lead to greater efficiency and will increase the competitiveness of Egyptian exports and the value added to the economy. 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The writer is a lecturer in the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University.
