Egypt's Minister of Investment and International Cooperation, Sahar Nasr, met with the Japanese ambassador Masaki Noke; Chief Representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Yoshifumi Omura; Director General of Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), Takashi Tsunami; and representatives of about 25 Japanese companies, to discuss preparations for the 2019 Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7). TICAD7 is scheduled for 28-30 August with the participation of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, accompanied by an Egyptian delegation and several memorandums of understanding (MoUs) are expected to be signed during the conference. Nasr met with the Japanese ambassador twice in May and July. During the recent meeting, both parties discussed the Japanese companies' expansions in the Egyptian market in light of the Egyptian government's improvements of the business climate, according to a Tuesday ministerial statement. Nasr assured the full coordination with the governmental entities to boost the economic cooperation with the Japanese side, especially in terms of promoting investments, adding that her ministry keeps in contact with Japanese companies after finalising foundation procedures to facilitate the start of the production process. Nasr called on the Japanese companies to increase their presence in Egypt, noting that about 106 Japanese companies are already investing in Egypt about $880m. Japanese FDIs increased by 74.3% at end of fiscal year (FY) 2017/18 to reach $162.1m, compared to $93m in FY 2016/17, Nasr said. The inaugural session of TICAD7 will be on Africa's business climate in the presence of considerable numbers of Egyptian, African, and Japanese businesspersons, ambassador Noke clarified. "Egypt enjoys good investment opportunities where many Japanese companies are keen on injecting new money. This is the best time to invest in Egypt," the ambassador asserted.
