In order to develop the trade and logistics activities, the Egyptian government will add 4,000 km to the roads network in 2016, Minister of Industry and Foreign Trade Tarek Qabil said during his speech in the Egypt International Logistics Forum on Sunday. In the same conference, Minister of Transport Saad El-Geioushy said his ministry will undertake several reforms in the transport network before the end of the current fiscal year. El-Geioushy said they will apply new safety procedures by December 2015, adding that 60% of the country's bridges will also be developed in the same period. He noted that the ministry has signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with different companies to improve the trucks transport in Egypt, which currently account for about 1,200 trucks. The ministry also signed contracts to develop 350 railcars in the railway sector, El-Geioushy said. "This is a challenging plan of our ministry, but the people will feel changes by next 30 June," the minister stated. El-Geioushy said he will announce new investment projects in the transportation sector this week, which are the results of his meeting with 30 ambassadors over the past month and a half. With regards to river transport, El-Geioushy said they are preparing three projects in partnership with the private sector, one of which links Damietta and Cairo by river. El-Geioushy also announced a new university for transport will be launched in cooperation with Germany, France and the US by January 2016.
