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Stimulating investment in agriculture is considered a crucial part of diversifying Gabon’s economy and reducing dependency on food imports. The government is currently supporting a two-track investment programme that will encourage agro-industrial projects to increase the sector’s contribution to GDP and support small-scale farmers to boost production for local markets. Gabon has great potential for cash crops and recent increases in investment are likely to scale up production of rubber, palm oil, coffee, cocoa and sugar. The country has signed agreements with foreign companies to develop palm oil plantations, as well as a rubber plantation and processing plant. The timber market, which makes up 6% of non-hydrocarbons GDP, was dealt a blow with the raw timber export ban in 2010 – a ruling that bankrupted many small producers. However, the number of local processing facilities is rapidly rising and the government is focusing on increasing downstream activity in the segment. This chapter contains interviews with Julien Nkoghe Bekale, Minister of Agriculture; and Ernst A Brugger, Chairman, Precious Woods.

Gabon’s status as the sixth-largest crude oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa has helped the country achieve the second-highest per capita GDP in the region. While the country’s resource-dependent economy took a hit when global demand dropped during the financial crisis of 2008-09, recovery has been strong and growth has remained robust. The government has in recent years put a greater focus on economic diversification to decrease the economy’s dependence on oil revenues, which represented 19.3% of GDP in 2011. These efforts include increasing value-added activities in other areas of the economy, including rubber processing and cocoa, coffee and palm oil production. As part of the Emerging Gabon strategy, the government is also seeking to create a more open economic environment for investors with the creation of special economic zones, which will offer significant incentives. This chapter contains interviews with Magloire Ngambia, Minister of Investment Promotion; Henri-Claude Oyima, Director and Chairman, BGFIBank; Shanta Devarajan, Chief Economist for Africa, World Bank; and Nina Abouna, Director-General, APIEX.

The 2011 revolution had an impact on Egypt’s sizable banking sector but was not nearly as dramatic as was expected, thanks to a steady stream of reforms since 2004 that have improved the overall health and transparency of the country’s financial institutions. High exposure to sovereign debt weakened the outlook for some banks, and profitability took a hit, but overall liquidity remains high, thanks to an increase in deposits of 6% in the year up to September 2011. By the end of 2011, non-performing loans had dropped from 13.6% to 10.9%, and non-government lending began to see a slight rise year-on-year by early 2012. This chapter contains an interview with Farouk El Okdah, Governor, Central Bank of Egypt; and Hisham Ezz Al Arab, Chairman, Commercial International Bank.

This chapter provides essential legal information for establishing a company in-country, with the aid of Helmy, Hamza & Partners. This section also features an interview from Hatem Soliman, International Partner, Helmy, Hamza & Partners (Baker & McKenzie).