CAIRO - Minerals are the solution to the problem of unemployment, provided that the concerned bodies issue laws to protect investors in this sector. Egypt has scientists, researchers and legislators quite capable of developing this industry. As in every country, the minerals under the ground in Egypt belong to the State. In Oriental and developing countries, the governments are responsible for mining and exploiting minerals. In advanced countries, investors or specialised mineral companies are given the right to exploit minerals in return for an annual fee. China, for example, grants investors a full tax exemption to encourage mining for minerals. Dr Mohamed Ragei, the head of the Arab Association for Oil and Minerals, calls for establishing an entity to be responsible for Egypt's mineral wealth. Sami el-Raghi, founder of Centamin Egypt Company, purchased by the Pharaonic Company for Gold Mines, says that, in Egypt, the Government bears the cost of excavation and development. “So why would officials entrust a project in this sector to a specialised investor, if the Government had to bear the costs if it failed?” he asks. Esmat Abbas, director-general of el-Soukari Mines, says that Egypt could make a lot of money out of its gold reserves. “If the Egyptian Government invited 100 companies to prospect for gold in Egypt and each one spent only $10 million on exploration, the country would be $1 billion richer,” Abbas explains. He adds that most of Egypt's mineral wealth is concentrated in the Eastern Desert, the Western desert and Sinai, stressing that such prospecting would have a big impact on development in these areas. “If only 10 per cent of these 100 companies were successful, that would mean 10 mineral projects, in each of which $4 billion would probably be invested,” Abbas explains. All the experts stress that gold could make the country more money than the total revenues from petroleum, tourism and the Suez Canal put together. “For this to happen, mineral investors, whether Egyptians or foreigners, should be allowed to work on Egyptian land. They would pay an annual fee and, if successful, they would pay tax on their profits from the gold they mined.”
