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Egypt’s natural competitive advantages should allow its agriculture sector to strengthen as the economy recovers over the near term, and recent government policy has allowed for an increase in the recommended sale prices for several crops, helping sustain the livelihoods of millions of Egyptians that depend on farming. Furthermore, the establishment of clearer quality standards is already helping to drive exports to new markets in Asia. Ongoing strategies that safeguard diminishing water resources and farmland should enhance the sector’s development, while further integration of distribution channels could assist small-scale farmers in accessing export markets. Coordination between agriculture production and processing capacity also has the potential to boost revenues. This chapter contains an interview with Alaa Diab, CEO, Agriculture Group – PICO.

Better transport networks are not only key to fulfilling the country’s ambitions to raise trade volumes with international markets; they will also be useful in properly managing the ongoing urban development taking place across many parts of the country. To reach these goals an increase in private investment participation is required. Moreover, for Egypt to maintain its position as a global maritime transport centre, ongoing improvements in port capacity are key, as well as measures to improve the competitiveness of port operations. Government plans to expand cargo movement across the Nile River will open up opportunities for multimodal transport across the country, and a clear framework to attract more involvement of the private sector in the system should boost the construction and operation of river ports in the pipeline for construction. This chapter contains an interview with Mohab Mameesh, Chairman, Suez Canal Authority; and Chairman, Suez Canal Economic Zone.

The construction industry is poised to remain one of the most dynamic sectors of the economy. This has been apparent in an increase in the number of large-scale projects involving transport, energy, utilities and urban development. This ongoing burst of construction activity is part of an effort to address infrastructure gaps, and improve Egypt’s standing among domestic and international investors. On the other side of the spectrum, real estate developers have been able to adapt their offers to the new needs of Egyptian buyers, and have progressed with ongoing plans for housing, office space and new retail areas. Efforts to construct new cities and the New Administrative Capital are also driving innovation within the sector. Even with a long list of construction projects in the pipeline a significant amount of attention and resources in the sector will be directed towards housing and other real estate developments in the near term. This chapter contains interviews with Hassan Allam, CEO, Hassan Allam Holding; and Ahmed Zaki Abdeen, Chairman, New Administrative Capital for Urban Development.

With the government prioritising economic diversifi¬cation, Egypt’s digital transformation continued apace in 2018. Although the country’s mobile market appears to have already reached saturation in terms of subscribers, exponential increases in data use on the back of the 4G rollout, as well as the prospect of a sizeable fixed-line network expansion, are expected to continue to drive revenue growth for telecoms in the near future. Guided by its ICT 2030 Strategy, which aims to transform Egypt into a telecoms and tech centre on both a regional and global scale, government support remains key with infrastructure investments, tax incentives for tech parks and manufacturing projects. Private sector support for the nascent tech start-up industry offers promising prospects for the country. This chapter contains interviews with Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology; and Adel Hamed, CEO, Telecom Egypt.

With a long-established presence of large-scale manufacturing capacity and a rapidly expanding domestic market, Egypt’s industrial sector will remain critical for job creation and regional development. Government strategies to expand production capacity into Upper Egypt are expected to improve employment options, and investment into road and railway links will also be critical to ensure that this manufacturing capacity can be developed with a close connection with logistics networks. Moreover, with a population of nearly 100m, expanding by roughly 2m every year, Egypt remains a sizable market for retailers and fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers. However, economic instability and the devaluation of the pound have brought new challenges and a need for the sector to adapt to remain competitive. Modern retail areas are nevertheless expanding, and customers are increasingly interested in interacting with retailers through new technologies, bringing new opportunities for the sector to expand in order to cater to changing consumer trends. This chapter contains an interview with Tawfeek Laham, CEO, Middle East Glass.

Aside from the member states of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Coun¬tries, Egypt is Africa’s largest oil producer, as well as its third-largest producer of dry natural gas, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Despite the abundance of its natural resources, how¬ever, the country faced an energy crisis following the 2011 revolution, marked by frequent blackouts and a slowdown of foreign investment from international oil and gas interests. In response, the government has undertaken a wholesale reform of its subsidy system, licensed exploration activities in newly discovered fields and renewed its efforts to pay down its outstanding debt. These changes have permitted natural resource development that is more financially sustainable and attracted foreign direct investment to support the exploration and exploitation of new sources. This chapter contains interviews with Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources; and Maria Moraeus Hanssen, CEO and Chairman, DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG.