Egyptian contracting firms are invited to participate in eight giant infrastructure projects in five African countries with investments reaching $650 million, a senior official in the Egyptian government said Saturday. Located in Chad, Gabon, Mauritius, Kenya, and Congo, the projects include new roads, bridges, and water and sanitation networks in addition to residential, hotel, and medical flagships, the source further told Amwal Al Ghad. These projects are all financially supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the source said. To date, the projects are under the study from six major Egyptian contracting firms; Hassan Allam Sons for Construction, Petrojet, Samco Construction, Redcon Construction, Concord for Engineering and Contracting, and Samcrete, he added. There are only 14 Egyptian contracting firms operating in Africa, having the state-run Arab Contractors Company capturing the lion's share with a total business volume of $2 billion. Egyptian government seeks to export the country's construction sector to the continent by attracting 45 local contracting firms to participate in major projects overseas and eventually achieve massive investment returns estimated at $20 billion in the upcoming years.
