Branded as an attractive Mediterranean hub, Egypt is a choice for many as a big business destination, given its premium offshoring status. The country has proved its resilience as a leading global IT offshoring and outsourcing hub with numerous investments in the sector over the past few years. Today, the confidence of multinational partners in Egypt's highly skilled talent pool is highlighted through a signing ceremony held by the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) cementing Egypt's position as a leading global offshoring and outsourcing hub. The signing ceremony of 29 agreements with big IT offshoring and business process services providers was attended by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat at Sultan Hussein Kamel Palace in Cairo — one of Egypt's most historic gems. Talaat endorsed the agreements, saying that they will create over 34,000 jobs directed towards exports through 35 global delivery centers with an export value worth $1bn annually. "These agreements reflect Egypt's conducive business environment and multinationals' confidence in our qualified local talent," Talaat commented. He also underlined Egypt's potential as the next big hub for digital and high-end services thanks to the constant efforts made to boost Egypt's competitiveness in the offshoring industry. "With its unique central location at the crossroads between three continents, Egypt delivers a resilient high-quality digital infrastructure and provides a supportive legislative framework catching up with the global rapid growth," he continued. "Our plentiful supply of tech talent is all set and ready at a very competitive cost, with proven experience in business services delivery for global firms to more than 100 countries with 20 different languages." Egypt's offshoring industry is witnessing an unprecedented momentum of growth. The country enjoys many competitive advantages that established its reputation as a favourable global offshoring destination. The diverse IT and digital services, abundance of talent, cost competitiveness, resilient business operations, and the government's support are among Egypt's unique value proposition that encourage global enterprises to launch and expand their global operations. Former CEO of the ITIDA Amr Mahfouz added: "We're thrilled to sign so many business agreements with global technology companies, which demonstrates the strength of Egypt's IT sector to attract new business and cement existing relationships. The current geopolitical risks have led to major challenges and service disruption across key delivery locations, combined with the aching global shortage of talent. But through our mission to support the development of the technology sector in Egypt, the ITIDA has helped industry players to be well-positioned and supplied with highly skilled, reliable talent, making Egypt the best option for multinationals looking to offshore and outsource their business." "The ITIDA continues to invest heavily in building the digital and soft skills of our large talent pool, with a strategic focus on developing the country's capabilities in high-value services, including engineering, R&D, embedded software, and electronic design. This latest round of deals will be a significant contributor in helping the ITIDA to achieve the goals of the Digital Egypt Strategy for Offshoring, which aims to multiply export revenues and create high-value job opportunities for our skilled domestic talent pool," Mahfouz added. The value of Egypt's digital exports will increase by $1bn, marking a significant growth to the current export revenue of $4.9bn. Moreover, the agreements include both new partnerships with leading technology companies launching global delivery centres for the first time and expansions of existing successful business relationships which will triple the size of operations in Egypt. Entering the country for the first time are Capgemini, Evolvice, Nortal, PWC, Tech Mahindra, and Trimetis. While the leading companies who are expanding their current business include Advansys ESC, Amazon, ATOS, IBM Egypt, Microsoft, Majid Al-Futtaim Global Solutions, Majorel, MEAPAL, Concentrix, MicroWize Technology, CrossWorkers, Dell Technologies, Pepsico, Expleo, SEITECH Solutions, Honeywell, Sitel Group, Sutherland, Webhelp, SYS Misr for Information Technology Services, Pixelogic, Valeo, and Vodafone Intelligent Solutions. The 34,000 new jobs will spread across different export sectors, including 21,000 in the Business Process Services sector (contact centres and shared services centers), 10,500 in the IT services sector, and 3,000 in the engineering and R&D sector. The signings are in line with the ITIDA's mandate and strategic objectives to drive more foreign investments in the IT sector, increase Egypt's digital exports, and create more jobs in the offshoring sector. Last February, the ITIDA launched the Digital Egypt Strategy for Offshoring (2022-2026) to unlock further growth potential in the industry based on a thorough and objective study of the Egyptian market and global demand.
