On the sidelines of President Al-Sisi's official visit to the US, Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr met on Wednesday with Dev Jagadesan, the acting president and CEO of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), which is an independent US government agency that aims to help US companies invest in emerging markets. The two sides discussed providing guarantees to US companies to invest in Egypt in order to contribute to the economic development and create new job opportunities for the youth. In this framework, the minister confirmed that Egypt constitutes a promising market for the biggest expansion, growth, and investment for the American companies. Nasr explained that Egypt has taken the necessary measures to address the obstacles that hinder the work of the private sector and foreign investors by issuing the new investment act. This is in addition to facilitating several legislative reforms, including the issuance of the law on financial leasing. Nasr indicated that the government is willing to improve the investment climate to conform to Egypt's vision of achieving the objectives of sustainable development. Jagadesan expressed OPIC's desire to inject new investments in Egypt in the near term, confirming the importance of Al-Sisi's visit to Washington, in order to increase economic cooperation between the two countries. He added that OPIC, which was founded in 1971, works to stimulate private sector investments—particularly outside the United States—in addition to achieving economic integration in the emerging countries. Jagadesan indicated that the corporation provides US firms with risk-management tools for foreign direct investment, helping them to work in the new markets. He clarified that OPIC plans to increase investments to reach about 160 countries around the world—especially Egypt—and help provide job opportunities.
