Egypt's Minister of Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir met with Helene Budliger Artieda, Director of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), at the Ministry's headquarters in New Administrative Capital on Monday. They discussed ways to enhance joint economic cooperation in the fields of trade, industry, and investment, as well as the global economic situation and topics of mutual interest. The Minister highlighted Egypt's keenness to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation with Switzerland, especially within the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). He noted that the Egyptian market offers a large number of attractive investment opportunities for Swiss investors, given its large consumer market, low energy prices, and incentive packages for strategic projects. He also mentioned the possibility of accessing the markets of African countries through the AfCFTA. Samir said that the ministry is currently preparing an integrated national strategy for industrial development that aims to achieve a high industrial growth rate, increase the industry's contribution to the GDP, and boost Egyptian exports, in cooperation with international and national organizations. He added that the ministry has identified 152 investment opportunities to start manufacturing in Egypt to provide the industrial sector's needs for production inputs, which represents a distinct investment opportunity for the Swiss business community. According to the minister, trade exchange between Egypt and Switzerland reached about $1.52bn last year, compared to about $1.41bn in 2021, an increase of 7.8%. He also said that Switzerland ranks 15th on the list of the most important countries investing in Egypt, with investments amounting to $2.179bn in 433 projects. For her part, Artieda expressed her country's keenness to boost the economic and trade ties with Egypt, as it is one of the key countries in the Middle East region and a main gateway to the African continent. Artieda said that Egypt is a major economic partner for Switzerland, especially in the areas of trade, investment, and development projects. She also affirmed the interest of Swiss companies to invest and expand in the Egyptian market, as it is one of the main investment destinations in the region. She highlighted the potential of establishing more Swiss projects in Egypt, especially in the fields of food industries, green economy, renewable energy, infrastructure, export guarantee, transportation, and agriculture. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs also expressed its willingness to expand development cooperation projects in Egypt, especially with regard to technical support programs and the provision of experts.
