Dr. Mohamed Farid:
- Enhancing the investment climate is a priority for attracting foreign investment.
- We support the expansion of Egyptian companies into Africa.
- We aim to increase trade exchange with the UK and maximize comparative advantages.
- Egypt welcomes UK investments in high value-added sectors.
Sir Chris Bryant:
- We are keen to strengthen investment and trade cooperation with Egypt.
- We support business expansion into Africa through regional partnerships.
- We seek to deepen the economic partnership with Egypt in the coming phase.
As part of the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade’s (MIFT) efforts to strengthen economic cooperation and attract foreign direct investment, Dr. Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade (MIFT Minister), held a virtual meeting with Sir Chris Bryant, Minister of State at the United Kingdom (UK) Department for Business and Trade, to discuss upgrading economic and trade relations between the two countries.
The meeting comes within the framework of supporting joint investments and expanding partnership horizons across sectors of mutual interest, contributing to sustainable economic growth and enhanced bilateral trade between Egypt and the United Kingdom.
Dr. Farid emphasized that the Egyptian government places high priority on improving the investment climate and providing an attractive business environment for investors.
He expressed Egypt’s aspiration to strengthen cooperation with the UK in the field of export finance, highlighting the importance of leveraging available financing instruments to support Egyptian and British companies—particularly in African markets—in a way that promotes regional economic integration.
MIFT Minister noted that MIFT supports the outward expansion of Egyptian companies, especially into Africa, stressing the importance of building institutional partnerships between relevant entities in both countries to achieve this objective.
He also underscored the need to increase trade flows between Egypt and the UK by capitalizing on each side’s comparative advantages and addressing any obstacles that may hinder the smooth flow of trade.
Dr. Farid stressed the importance of continuous follow-up on agreed initiatives and ensuring memoranda of understanding are implemented through tangible projects on the ground, ensuring concrete economic returns.
He reaffirmed Egypt’s openness to British investments, particularly in productive and service sectors with high value added, emphasizing MIFT’s readiness to provide all necessary support and facilitation for companies seeking to invest and expand in the Egyptian market.
The Minister also highlighted the importance of enhancing access for Egyptian agricultural exports to the UK market, expressing Egypt’s interest in increasing export volumes, reflecting the competitiveness of Egyptian products and supporting agricultural export growth.
He further noted the importance of thorough preparation for joint economic events—foremost among them the Egypt-UK Business Forum—to strengthen engagement between the two countries’ business communities and facilitate new partnerships.
On his part, Sir Chris Bryant affirmed the UK’s commitment to strengthening cooperation with Egypt in investment and trade, emphasizing the importance of exploring new opportunities to support British companies investing in the Egyptian market in a manner that serves mutual interests.
He added that the UK places importance on developing export finance mechanisms and expressed readiness to support companies seeking to expand into Africa through cooperation with regional partners, thereby enhancing prospects for shared growth.
