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Sunday, 29 May 2022

Madbouly continues Egypt’s drive for fresh FDI in the UAE

Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly will launch a new industrial partnership with the UAE and Jordan in Abu Dhabi today, according to a cabinet statement. The PM is leading a delegation of cabinet ministers and senior officials to the Emirati capital where they will announce the initiative alongside Emirati and Jordanian officials. The partnership will “support and strengthen industrial integration between the three countries and serve development objectives,” the statement said, without providing further details. This comes a month after President Abdel Fattah El Sisi held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed in Cairo.

Madbouly targets fresh Emirati investment: The PM held a meeting with leading Emirati investors yesterday in a bid to draw fresh investment, cabinet said in a separate statement. Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ has already invested USD 1.8 bn into EGX-listed companies this year, but Madbouly now wants to secure new commitments to help fund the government’s ambitious infrastructure plans, which include new LNG terminals and pipelines to ramp up gas exports to Europe, renewable energy projects and airports.

Another USD 15 bn coming by 2027? Emirati investors could up their investments in Egypt to USD 35 bn over the next five years from USD 20 bn currently, said Jamal Bin Saif Al Jarwan, head of the UAE International Investor Council (UIIC), during the meeting.

The government is prioritizing attracting foreign direct investment over portfolio flows, which have had destabilizing effects on the currency in recent weeks, Planning Minister Hala El Said said during the meeting. Egypt has become increasingly dependent on hot money as a source of hard currency in recent years, making it vulnerable to global market volatility.

The government is going all out to attract fresh investment in the economy: The PM last week advertised the government’s infrastructure plans in a meeting with US CEOs and pledged fresh incentives in a bid to get them to invest. At the weekend, Vice Minister of Finance Ahmed Kouchouk held similar talks with representatives of 20 French companies, calling on them to invest in upcoming projects and offering “golden licenses” to expedite production and investment.

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