‘Egypt is navigating towards success’
Newspaper Title: http://gulfnews.com/
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Monday - 27 July 2015
In an interview with the Egyptian daily publication, Al Masry Al Youm, Dr Sultan Ahmad Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and head of the UAE-Egypt Liaison Office, discusses the UAE’s strong ties with Egypt, Egypt’s economic sustainability post the Egypt Economic Development Conference, the importance of private sector investment, the global fight against extremism and the UAE’s unique model for social development in Egypt
Q) The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have offered economic and political support to Egypt. How do you view this support particularly after the Egypt Economic Development Conference?
A) The UAE’s support for Egypt is firmly rooted in the conviction that Egypt’s stability and prosperity is stability and prosperity for the region and the world. It is also a reflection of the very close relationship between the two countries that was set over 40 years ago by our founding father, Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and has been further enhanced by our leadership. The period of instability in Egypt, from 2010 to 2013, had adversely impacted its economy and society. Based on the decades-long relationship, it was only natural that the UAE stood by Egypt to help restore the country to its rightful place, as the political, economic and social spinal cord of the region.
To date, the social development projects alone have created 900,000 jobs and positively impacted the lives of 10 million Egyptians.
Alongside the clear mandate of the UAE-Egypt Liaison office, the UAE has also contributed to the mobilisation of economic and political support for Egypt through international and regional platforms such as the Egyptian Gulf Investment Forum which was held in December 2013 and the Egypt Economic Development Conference (EEDC) that was hosted in March 2015 in Sharm Al Shaikh. It was at the EEDC that the Egyptian government was able to secure $20 billion, of which Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates contributed $12 billion.
Q) What is your vision for what has been accomplished economically in Egypt since June 30, 2013 and especially in the past year?
A) We have witnessed a positive change in Egypt’s economic performance. Some 5.6 per cent growth was recorded in the first half of financial year 2014-2015 (July-March) compared with 1.2 per cent in the same period of last year. Tax returns increased by 35 billion Egyptian pounds in the first half of financial year 2014-2015 amounting to 204.9 billion pounds — an increase of 21 per cent when compared to the previous year. Foreign investments in Egypt also rose to $1.8 billion in the first quarter of financial year 2014-2015 — a 50 per cent increase by comparison to the first quarter of the preceding year. Additionally, the big three credit rating agencies have raised Egypt’s rating and positively revised their outlooks. In October 2014, Moody’s revised their outlook on Egypt to stable and in April 2015 upgraded Egypt to B3. In December 2014, Fitch upgraded Egypt’s credit rating to B with a stable outlook, and in May 2015, Standard and Poor’s raised its outlook for Egypt to positive from stable.
The International Monetary Fund has also commended Egypt’s economic reforms. In November 2014, at the conclusion of the IMF’s Article IV mission to Egypt, mission chief Chris Jarvis stated, “Policies implemented so far, along with a return of confidence, are starting to produce a turnaround in economic activity and investment.” We have witnessed the development of 1,600 kilometres of new roads last year as part of a plan to create a road network of 3,200 kilometres across different parts of Egypt. The country has installed 3.6GW of new power capacity as part of a plan to increase Egypt’s power capacity by 50 per cent in the coming years.
Q) What is your opinion of the project of the Suez Canal and what is your expectations for the Canal’s future development?
A) I am proud that a UAE company, the National Marine Dredging Company (NMDC), was involved in this project. The NMDC founded and led the ‘Challenge Consortium’ including the Dutch and Belgium firms Boskalis, Van Oord and Jan De Nul, — that, in turn, was able to deliver the necessary dredging in record time. I was able to visit the project site more than once in this past year and I have been impressed by the great progress and tireless efforts of all those involved, including the Suez Canal Authority, the Egyptian Armed Forces and the engineers and workers on site. This achievement validates the ability of the Egyptian people to stand in the face of adversity with great resolve, determination and success.
We look forward to the opening of the new Suez Canal, which will play a significant and essential role in promoting economic activity in Egypt and the region by increasing the capacity of the channel and reducing the waiting time for ships to pass. We are also looking forward to the development of the Suez Canal Development Zone, which will include ports, industrial parks and logistic hubs that will ensure continued economic growth through attracting foreign and local investments and creating new job opportunities.
Q) Do investors in the UAE believe that the investment climate in Egypt has become attractive? What do you think of the legislative amendments such as the new investment law, which have been put in place to attract investment?
A) Private sector investment is a realistic indication of the attractiveness of the investment climate. Today, there are over 600 UAE companies functioning in Egypt. The goal now is to increase the attractiveness of the Egyptian market. Furthermore, given the rapid population growth, there is an urgent need to create jobs through expansion and new market growth.
‘Continuous development’ is a concept that is widely prevalent in the world of commerce, wherein countries seek to increase their competitiveness in order to attract sustained foreign capital. As part of this priority, it is important to build an attractive environment for investment through a system of laws and to simplify procedures and create an integrated experience that will make Egypt an ideal hub for investors and new projects.
Q) Egypt is exposed to terrorist attacks that have recently increased. What is your opinion on this and do you think it will affect investments?
A) The UAE’s position in this regard is clear: we condemn any attempt to destabilise the security and stability of Egypt. The UAE leadership has confirmed its solidarity with the Egyptian government and will stand by its side in the face of extremism and terrorism. We, in the UAE, have great confidence in Egypt’s ability to overcome challenges and continue to build a bright future for its children. We also believe that this is a challenge that all nations must address as soon as possible. In fact, most recently, the government of the UAE issued an anti-discrimination and anti-extremism law that aims at curbing hate speech and extremism. It is no longer enough to think of this war in military terms. There is a stronger, more resolute ideological war that feeds the terrorist narrative indirectly through promoting toxic, hateful and exclusive ideologies. This law is a clear demonstration of the UAE’s rejection of the culture of hate and destruction in favour of a culture of forgiveness, peace, collaboration and positive energy.
Q) The UAE government contributes significantly to the infrastructure projects in Egypt. What are the most important projects that you are involved with at the moment?
A) The development projects that have been implemented by the UAE-Egypt Liaison Office focus on vital sectors such as energy, housing, food security, education, health care and transportation. To date we have been able to deliver 78 fully operational family health clinics in 23 governorates across remote and rural areas, provide 100 per cent of Egypt’s insulin needs through the refurbishment of the vaccination lines, deliver 100 fully equipped schools and finalise the construction of over 50,000 housing units.
The projects also include the construction of four bridges, the provision of 600 public transport busses, the development of 136 wastewater plants, the construction of a 10MW solar power plant in Siwa and a vocational training and placement programme for tens of thousands of Egyptians. As for food security, we have provided the Egyptian government with 100,00 head of cattle; 50,000 of which will be used for dairy production. We are also constructing 25 wheat and grain silos.
