Moment of Truth.. Egypt to Manufacture Mercedes.. More to Come

By: Elham Abul Fateh

Anyone who visited Germany, particularly the city of Stuttgart, the largest and richest city in Baden-Württemberg, knows what it means for any country to host a Mercedes-Benz company.

I visited the Mercedes suburb in Stuttgart and saw its museum and its giant factories. I felt very sad as I knew they were withdrawing from the Egyptian market.

This sadness was replaced with great pleasure to learn that the company is coming back once again with bigger investments and the announcement of new agreements in Egypt.

It is just the beginning of eventually manufacturing Mercedes in Egypt and I’m confident that the more is to come as Egypt, by time, gets to be a destination for international investments which pursue the African markets as well, an all advantage only exist in Egypt.

The return of Mercedes-Benz to the Egyptian market is a news that made me, as well as Egyptians, happy for it means, not only a return of a global company to the country, but also a shift in the global trust in our economy. This trust would not have been there but for the successful economic reforms, and that the hard times we lived coming to be fruitful, and we could really attract foreign investments to the Egyptian market once again, after some announced withdrawal in post 2011, and once they felt assured again, thanks to the successful economic steps supported by the Egyptians, they returned with bigger and stronger agreements.

The return of Mercedes-Benz to Egypt implied an agreement to construct a big center at the economic area at Suez Canal, produce two models of cars, which were previously manufactured in the United States, export part of its production to the gulf region and implement investment projects in the new administrative capital, which we feel proud as it will be one of the world’s biggest, most beautiful smart cities.

I think the President's placing a significance for the return of Mercedes to the Egyptian market was a vital factor for the giant company to make its decision.. This is, undoubtedly, a great success for the economic vision of President Abdul Fattah Sisi, who met with the leaders of the company himself to solve any issues facing their work. This was revealed in the company’s statement. The statement disclosed that the company “Plans to build a car assembly plant in cooperation with the Egyptian government, after talks held by the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Prime Minister Dr. Mustapha Madbouli on one hand, and Markus Schiffer, a board member of the company, on the other.”

It also stated that Egypt enjoys an attractive competitive location for production and logistical support. “We are confident that with the establishment of the planned assembly plant in Egypt, we will be able to strengthen our position in the market, and with our huge production investments, electric initiatives and expertise in the field of modern vehicles, we are ready to support the Egyptian government in its transportation projects," the statement added.

In the same statement, the company welcomed the trust given by President El Sisi when he stated that the move reflects an improved investment and business environment in Egypt,  in the light of the implementation of the comprehensive economic reform program, and the openness of Egypt to cooperate with one of the largest international companies developing the automotive industry in various stages.

What I noticed and which is also beautiful, is that Daimler, one of Mercedes's subsidiaries, proposed its experience in applying modern transport technologies, electric transport, electric cars and self-driving cars, to be implemented in the new capital, along with all planned new smart cities, as well as establishing a central warehouse for Mercedes spare parts and many shops and accredited workshops in Cairo, Giza, Alexandria and Hurghada. This, in turn, will provide more than 1000 jobs for experts, engineers and technicians among Egyptians for Mercedes-Benz.

I think that the decision of Mercedes will have positive implications on the investment climate and our credit rating, which will encourage other international companies to invest in the Egyptian market for the decision of the world's giant car manufacturer to return to Egypt is sending a positive message to the business community in the world.

In addition, the Egyptian market is currently one of the largest markets in the Middle East and Africa, for its strategic location and free trade agreements with many European, Arab and African countries. This, in turn, makes it easy to export the company's products to different markets.

The return of Mercedes to Egypt is to be followed by more and more companies and investments in Egypt during the coming period and this is a positive indicator of the Egyptian economy and investment, along with the investment environment and legislative climate; extraction of permits and facilitation of procedures and acceleration of steps. Besides, there’s an improvement in the security aspect as well as the country's efforts led by the political leadership, all became attractive factors for investors worldwide.

Congratulations to the Egyptian market The return of Mercedes, it is not just a return to produce a car, but it is paving the way for more investments in the future, especially as the German company's statement talked about the prospects opened by the new administrative capital to all industries as well as the support of Mercedes to Egypt in the fields of modern transportation and renewable energy, including electric cars and self-driving cars, which means giving access to the new generation in Egypt to enter the next era, a new era in the systems of life and living standards ..