Beheira Commerce Chamber establishes poultry, fish exchanges, two ‘model markets' worth EGP 200m

Chamber considers establishing textile city, president to open commodity exchange in August, says chamber head

Beheira Chamber of Commerce is establishing two exchanges; one for poultry and another for fish, in addition to two model markets in the cities of Kafr El-Dawar and Idku, with investments worth EGP 200m. Model markets is a project proposed and adopted to provide a solution for informal, disorganised selling areas.
Fathy Morsy, head of Beheira Chamber of Commerce, said that the chamber is currently working on several vital projects in the governorate, most prominently the establishment of a poultry exchange on an area of 18 acres, in addition to a model market on an area of 24 acres.
He added that the chamber is also establishing a fish exchange, in addition to a model market in Idku, on an area of 18 acres. The land has already been received, with construction operations and preparations set to start early next year.
He explained that these projects are planned to be completed by the end of 2018 or early 2019, with approximate investments of EGP 200m.
He noted that the chamber is considering establishing an industrial city for the textile sector in Idku, in addition to a textile zone in Kafr El-Dawar. Additionally, there are negotiations to obtain the lands where the projects would be launched.
Regarding the commodity exchange, Morsy said that it has been decided that President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi will open it in August. "We are racing against time to complete it and operate even before the set date," he added.
The commodity stock exchange is considered the first project by Egyptian chambers of commerce aiming to make profit, based on the latest law amendments. It is the first case where the Federation of Chambers of Commerce is allowed to establish joint-stock companies targetting profits.
The commodities exchange was established in Badr City on an area of 45 acres, with investments of over EGP 450m. It includes 120 exhibiting areas, each on an area of 125 sqm. It also includes 220 large markets with an area of 185 sqm each, in addition to 460 small markets on an area of 125 sqm each.
The stock exchange also includes 14 large export terminals, each built on 835 sqm, in addition to 40 small export terminals on an area of 565 sqm, as well as 130 fridges with an area of 135 sqm, in addition to exhibition buildings, four banks on an area of 565 sqm per building, and two cafeterias.
40% of the project has been completed, according to the head of the chamber, as the implementation process was compressed to only two phases instead of three and the implementation would take two years instead of three.