Aboul Enein: Foreign Investments Face Serious Challenges Due to COVID-19

MP Mohamed Aboul Enein, Chairman and founder of Cleopatra Group, took part in the first virtual dialogue seminar, within the framework of the activities of "Egypt Can by Industry" initiative.

The talks were attended by Nabila Makram, Minister of State for Immigration and Egyptians Affairs Abroad, Dr. Hala Al-Saeed, Minister of Planning and Industrial Development, Dr. Minouche Shafik, director of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).

On his part, Aboul Enein talked about the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic on globalization and the world economy, saying that the Egyptian market is at risk of reducing foreign direct investments.

He confirmed that all world countries are still suffering negative impacts due to the outbreak of coronavirus; however they are trying to attract further foreign investments to help the economies of their countries.

He noted, "We can take advantage of the pandemic by stopping our sole dependence on imports and opening doors for small and medium businesses in order to meet our needs of the local products.

The prominent businessman stated, "We also need to develop a very clear industrial map during the coming period, especially that we have suffered over the past years to promote Egypt's image and strengthen its economy."

He concluded his speech by saying: "Egypt has successfully entered the industrial revolution and there will be amendments in laws and regulations soon to attract more investments to our country."

Notably, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi expressed his pleasure and satisfaction for the recent International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) praise to the performance of the Egyptian economy, despite the global outbreak of coronavirus pandemic crisis.

Sisi’s remarks came during his meeting with Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait, and deputy finance minister for financial policies Ahmed Kojok, presidential spokesman Bassam Radi said.

Earlier, head of the IMF team Uma Ramakrishnan said that the Egyptian economy had exceeded expectations, even during the crisis of outbreak of coronavirus.

“After recording a growth rate of 3.6 percent in FY2019/20, growth is projected to reach 2.8 percent in FY2020/21, with a modest recovery in all sectors except tourism, as the pandemic continues to disrupt international travel. Pandemic-related risks still exist in light of the second global wave of COVID-19 cases,” Ramakrishnan added.