Egyptian exporters suggested some financial and technical mechanisms to settle the government's accumulated dues owed to them, during a meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, the Minister of Trade and Industry, and the Industrial Development Authority to discuss a new export stimulating programme on Tuesday. Madbouly noted that the government pays great attention to boost Egyptian exports, stressing the necessity of completing this programme within a month. The Chairperson of the Agricultural Export Council, Abdel Hamid Demerdash, told Daily News Egypt that they agreed in this meeting to terminate the current export support programme in March. One of the proposed mechanisms to develop exports is to provide treasury bills or Sukuk to exporters at the same value of accumulated arrears so that they can be reimbursed within a specific period of time. Demerdash pointed out that exporters also suggested providing loans for exporters with interest rates that would be repaid from their dues in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance. Additionally, he stressed the need to open new export markets and new commercial service offices in South East Asia, and study the requirements of all markets. "Each export council is currently preparing a working paper on the most important proposals that support the state's plan in developing the export sector, being one of the most important foreign exchange resources," Demerdash said. Amr Abu Frekha, head of the Engineering Industries Export Council (EEC), said the council will meet on Sunday to discuss the pillars or EEC's plan that will be submitted to the government in the light of the new export stimulation programme. He commented that the new programme should overcome the problems and challenges faced in the previous version of the programme, and it should have a solid structure, besides solving the obstacles facing exporters' finance. Maha Saleh, executive director of the EEC, said that a new mechanism will be applied soon depending on incentives for exports. The current programme will be suspended on 1 March as the prime minister announced in a meeting with the different export councils' chairpersons on Tuesday. Saleh noted that the new programme will be designed to offer incentives rather than the current export programme, pointing out that the new one will ensure attracting more investments for the purpose of exporting, increasing number of exporters, and increase the Egyptian share in world market.
