New statistics issued by the Investment Ministry reveal a substantial decline in foreign investment in Egypt for the first three quarters of the 2009/10 fiscal year, during which as little as US$4 billion was recorded. The ministry attributed the decline to the ongoing global economic crisis. Nevertheless, the government hopes to see as much as US$10 billion in foreign investment over the course of the next fiscal year. "We will concentrate on investment from Asia," said Osama Saleh, head of the government-run General Authority for Investment, going on to predict that some 80 percent of this target would be realized. "We expect the Greek crisis to affect investment from European countries," he added. "We therefore need to diversify our sources of investment." While some experts expressed doubt that the government would be able achieve its stated objectives, they nevertheless urged it to offer attractive incentives to foreign investors, with a particular emphasis on labor-intensive projects. Foreign investment in Egypt reached US$11.1 billion in the 2006/07 fiscal year, and US$13.2 the following year. The figure fell to US$8.1 billion, however, in 2008/09. Economy expert Adel el-Ezaby, for his part, expected the government to achieve its target. "Egypt offers unique incentives that investors can't find elsewhere, " he said. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
