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Aided in part by the large domestic market, a spate of new industrial facilities, competitive labour costs and increasing urbanisation, the fundamentals of the Egyptian construction market look promising. The Egyptian real estate sector has continued to see growth, which has helped to support some contractors, but companies relying on work in the infrastructure segment, particularly those dependent on government contracts, have been suffering. Although the sector has been buoyed by positive population demographics and a mild backlog of public projects, rising costs and disputes over land ownership continue to pose challenges. However, the continued and long-term need for investment in housing and infrastructure means that diversified construction groups will certainly survive, if not thrive, over the medium to long term. The real estate market continues to exhibit potential, despite facing many challenges in the near term. Some of these, such as uncertainty, are the result of the turbulence following the 2011 revolution, while others, such as issues relating to the availability of land, date back several decades and will require sustained government action to resolve. In spite of an uncertain macro environment, the Egyptian real estate industry has managed to thrive over the past year and looks set to continue doing so. This is thanks to very propitious demographic fundamentals and a trend towards using property as a safe haven investment. This chapter contains interviews with Dasha Badrawi, Managing Director, Sixth of October Development and Investment Company (SODIC); and Magued Sherif, CEO, Hyde Park.

One of the country’s biggest magnets for foreign investment, Egypt’s ICT sector is well positioned to enjoy long-term growth. Internet penetration has been growing steadily, thanks to increasing accessibility, rising demand and more diverse content. More than 33m Egyptians access the internet, with broadband connections comprising over 90% of all internet connections. As of mid-2013, internet penetration stood at around 40%. Similarly, demand for IT products and services should continue to rise from the government and private sector alike, though the pace of growth will be linked to economic recovery. The telecoms sector is one of the most competitive and dynamic parts of the economy. Egypt has 94.5m mobile subscriptions for a population of around 85m, indicating a penetration rate of 113.5%, according to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. The market is internationalised – the three existing GSM operators are all majority foreign-owned, all by large global players, indicating the appeal of the market to the world’s biggest telcos. While other sectors have been hard hit by Egypt’s tumultuous post-revolutionary years, telecommunications companies have continued to invest and expand. The major development of the next year is likely to be the issue of universal licences, which at the time of writing was going ahead despite political uncertainty. This chapter contains an interview with Ashraf Sabry, CEO, Fawry.

As the largest non-OPEC oil producer in Africa as well as the continent’s second-largest natural gas producer, Egypt’s hydrocarbons resources and production play a central role in the nation’s economy. While the sector was nationalised in the 1960s, more recent reorganisations have created separate authorities for oil, gas and petrochemicals, which has allowed the private sector to play a bigger role. At the end of the 2000s, around 80% of oil and gas services were operated by the private sector and 90% of exploration activity was conducted by multinationals. Exploration activities have continued even amidst the ongoing political transition, with several recent discoveries adding to both oil and natural gas production. However, a number of long-standing challenges remain. These include an oil production level that has stayed flat in recent years and a rapidly rising demand for energy in the domestic market that has placed increasing pressure on Egypt’s exported gas supply. This chapter contains interviews with Sherif Ismail, Minister of Petroleum; G Steven Farris, CEO, Apache Corporation; and Ahmed Mostafa Emam Shaaban, Minister of Electricity and Energy.

It has been a difficult few years for Egypt’s economically vital tourism sector, in the wake of the 2011 revolution and with civil unrest continuing to occur in the summer of 2013. However, the country still managed to attract millions of foreign visitors, even discounting the number of arrivals who were not tourists per se. However, 2013 may prove tough. The disturbances earlier in the year, and the removal of the Freedom and Justice party-led government of Mohammed Morsi and its aftermath, are not good advertisements, even if the vast majority of foreign visitors remain unaffected. But Egypt’s ability to bounce back strongly from setbacks is well documented, and this should be the case again. The country has ample competitive advantages – its long coastline, the Red Sea, thousands of historical sites, welcoming people and a centuries-old reputation as a choice destination. This chapter contains interviews with ElHamy ElZayat, Chairman, Egyptian Tourism Federation; and Richard Solomons, Chief Executive, Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG).

Egypt has long served as one of the world’s oldest transport hubs. For millennia, its position, straddling major trade routes between Asia, Africa and Europe, has made the country a commercial and cultural crossroads, and since 1879 it has been home to the Suez Canal, through which 10% of the world’s total trade volume passes. Thanks largely to the canal, the transport sector has helped to buffer the country from worst-case scenarios amidst recent political upheaval. However, investment was down in early 2013 at $647m, 35% lower than the same period of 2012. While the transport sector in Egypt continues to suffer from the cumulative effects of years of underinvestment, there is a new awareness of its importance to the rest of the economy and a keenness to incorporate more private investment to the sector’s development. This chapter contains an interview with Simon Brown, Managing Director, Maersk Line Egypt.

Long a regional heavyweight, Egypt’s industrial sector boasts a variety of segments that have helped make the country one of Africa’s biggest cement producers and its second-largest steel manufacturer. Still, industry, in particular light manufacturing, has had to grapple with the turmoil that followed the 2011 revolution, in the form of issues such as labour unrest and a deterioration in the security environment. Given its proximity to major export destinations such as Europe and the Middle East, as well as its huge domestic market, the country remains highly competitive in many sectors. Moreover, various trade agreements bolster its attractiveness as an export centre. The outlook for overall industrial performance will depend to a large extent on economic growth in key export markets such as Europe. Despite being home to the largest population in the Arab world, Egypt hosts comparatively few modern large-scale retail supermarkets, hypermarkets and malls – and almost none away from the major cities of Cairo and Alexandria or tourist areas – making for enormous growth potential. In 2011/12 the value of activity in the sector was $23.66bn at current prices, and wholesale and retail trade accounted for 10.6% of GDP by factor costs. Growth in the retail sector has closely mirrored wider economic growth in Egypt in recent years and the development of the sector is likely to depend heavily on broader economic trends. This chapter contains interviews with Mounir Fakhry AbdelNour, Minister of Trade and Industry; Osman Saifullah Khan, CEO, SAIF Group; and Mohamed Farag Amer, Chairman, Faragalla Group.