A delegation of Mercedes-Benz's directors are set to visit Egypt in early 2017 to discuss expanding their investments in the Egyptian market. The company's officials in Egypt have expressed their willingness to increase their investments in Egypt in light of the improved economic conditions and the success of the government's economic reform programme, which spreads confidence among global companies, according to Minister of Industry and Trade Tarek Kabil. They added that it also increases the chances of their presence in the Egyptian market in the coming period. The announcement came during a meeting between the minister and a Mercedes-Benz delegation, headed by the company's CEO in Egypt Thomas Zorn. The meeting was also attended by the manufacturing, state, and local affairs manager at Daimler AG, Ingo Konrad. The meeting reviewed the government's efforts to support the automotive industry, and the promising opportunities in this sector in the coming period. Kabil pointed out that the automotive industry comes on top of the ministry's priorities, adding that the automotive industry strategy submitted to the parliament aims to develop automotive production and its feeder industries, which would contribute to making Egypt a regional and international centre for the automotive industry. The ministry is currently seeking to communicate with key players in the global automotive industry to attract them to establish a comprehensive automotive industry and develop feeder industries. The new automotive industry strategy was inspired by the Brazilian experience, and aims to support investors through new packages of incentives granted on the basis of the added value achieved in this area, according to the minister. Kabil highlighted the importance of investing in the local automotive industry, being an important hub for the African market, as well as a large number of countries and economic blocs that have signed free trade agreements with Egypt. He pointed out that Egypt has qualified technicians who have been trained in various training centres affiliated to the ministry and global automotive companies in Egypt. Zorn said that the company is looking to communicate with the Egyptian government, in a bid to inject more investments in the Egyptian market in light of the strong bilateral relations linking Egypt and Germany. Conrad pointed out that the German Association of the Automotive Industry will visit the Suez Canal Economic Zone soon to review available investment opportunities in the area, noting that Daimler has expanded its projects in China, the United States, Hungary, and South Africa, and seeks to expand in the Egyptian market. He added that his company appreciates the Egyptian government's interest in the automotive industry and its encouragement of investors to enter the local market, as well as the new policies, which deliver a clear vision to global automobile manufacturers. He noted that Daimler established a new academy in Egypt to train workers in technical and electronic fields, and there are three graduated batches so far, two of which were graduated in 2016.
