This includes government coordination, partnerships with the local and foreign private sector, and the formation of an executive working group, aimed at expanding scope and enhancing impact in support of the automotive industry.
MIFT Minister:
- The automotive industry is a key strategic pillar of the national economy, contributing to meeting local market needs and increasing employment rates.
- The Egyptian market possesses several key advantages that qualify it to attract major global automotive manufacturers.
Minister of Industry:
- A working group will be formed from members of the Supreme Council for Automotive Industry and the Automotive Industry Unit to review all data and information related to the program’s pillars, in order to identify manufacturers’ needs and proposals to enhance the program’s flexibility.
- The automotive components manufacturing industry represents the backbone of the success of the state’s ambitious plan to localize the automotive industry.
Minister of Finance:
- Localizing the automotive industry is a top economic priority for the government.
- Investment, tax, and customs incentives for developing the automotive industry are linked to the actual performance of manufacturers.
In line with the directives of the political leadership to localize domestic industry and stimulate the investment climate, Eng. Khaled Hashem, Minister of Industry, held an expanded meeting with Mr. Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance, and Dr. Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, in the presence of Dr. Gehan Saleh, Prime Minster Advisor for Economic Affairs, to review the implementation status of the National Automotive Industry Development Program (AIDP). The meeting also discussed ways to strengthen government coordination to create an attractive business environment and provide further facilitation to automotive manufacturers, with the participation of several members of the Supreme Council for Automotive Industry and the Automotive Industry Unit.
Minister of Industry Engineer Khaled Hashem stated that it was agreed during the meeting to form a working group comprising members of the Automotive Industry Unit (from the Ministries of Industry, MIFT, Finance, and Transport) and the Supreme Council for Automotive Industry. The group will conduct a comprehensive and detailed review of all data and information related to the AIDP. It will also hold a series of meetings with various automotive manufacturers operating in the Egyptian market, as well as targeted global companies, in order to identify manufacturers’ aspirations and needs, and to hear their views on the current business environment.
The Minister added that the program is not limited to supporting and deepening local production, but also extends to promoting exports as a strategic objective, in order to enhance and stimulate the competitiveness of vehicles manufactured in Egypt. He noted that the incentives and facilitation measures provided to automotive manufacturers through the program represent a key pillar and a true guarantee for establishing an integrated and enabling industrial environment, capable of attracting major global companies and leading automotive firms to invest in the Egyptian market, which in turn will attract major automotive component manufacturers.
The Minister also emphasized the strategic importance of the automotive components manufacturing sector, which represents the backbone of the state’s ambitious plan to localize the automotive industry. He pointed out that the Ministry will spare no effort in taking all measures and support mechanisms for Egyptian factories operating in this vital sector. The support plan includes providing appropriate financing mechanisms, introducing effective incentives, and offering all necessary procedural facilitations. These serious steps aim to establish a fully integrated local manufacturing base that relies primarily on domestic production, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of Egyptian industry and meeting future expansion needs.
Eng. Hashem noted the importance of studying and analysing the experiences of leading countries in the automotive manufacturing sector, which have achieved significant and tangible advancements in this field, with the aim of benefiting from their experience and transferring successful practices to the Egyptian market.
On his part, Dr. Mohamed Farid Saleh, MIFT Minister, emphasized the importance of strengthening joint efforts to develop the automotive sector and its supporting industries, as it represents one of the strategic pillars of the national economy, contributing to meeting local market needs and increasing employment rates. He also highlighted the importance of the AIDP, which supports industrial localization and the development of component manufacturing industries.
He further pointed out the Ministry’s commitment to providing full support to the automotive and components manufacturing sectors, in line with the state’s direction to support national industry and enhance its competitiveness. He noted that additional incentives for the automotive industry are currently being considered under the Investment Law, aiming to encourage investment and expand production capacity in the coming period.
The Minister stressed the importance of reaching mass production levels in the Egyptian automotive industry, in a way that helps reduce production costs and expand the automotive components manufacturing industry, enabling manufacturers to compete in both domestic and international markets. He noted that the Egyptian market has several key advantages that qualify it to attract major global automotive companies, including its large consumer market and the Free Trade Agreements and Preferential Trade Agreements Egypt has signed with many countries and major economic blocs worldwide, which allow Egyptian products access to these markets with Preferential Treatment.
On his part, Mr. Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance, affirmed that the Egyptian government places the localization of the automotive industry at the top of its economic priorities. This is reflected in the AIDP, which is based on providing investment, tax, and customs incentives linked to the actual performance of manufacturers, and based on the percentage of local component, production volume, and exports. He also emphasized the need for swift action to meet the requirements of any new company seeking to benefit from the program’s incentives.
