Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Egypt, UK Launch New Joint Committee to Support Partnership in Infrastructure 


Wed 09 Jun 2021 | 04:39 PM
NaDa Mustafa

The Department for International Trade (DIT) and the Egyptian-British Chamber of Commerce (EBCC) announce the launch of a new bilateral Committee on Infrastructure.

 

The initiative aims to bring together private sector companies from the United Kingdom and Egypt, relevant government departments, and international financial institutions in support of increased bilateral collaboration in the infrastructure sector.

 

The launch meeting took place on Tuesday 8 June and included a keynote address from His Excellency Kamel Al-Wazir, Minister of Transport for the Arab Republic of Egypt. His Excellency Al-Wazir provided an update on major Egyptian transport projects with an emphasis on opportunities in rail, metro, and ports, and ways in which UK companies can get involved.

 

The meeting was opened by His Excellency Tarek Adel, Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the UK, and Anisah Dathi, Country Director for Egypt at the British Embassy in Cairo, representing Sir Geoffrey Adams, British Ambassador to Egypt.

 

Egyptian Ambassador to the UK His Excellency Tarek Adel said: “I am positive that this Committee will be of great value in further enhancing dialogue and providing project-specific cooperation in the field of infrastructure. Investment in infrastructure projects lies at the heart of our government’s long-term vision for sustainable development because of this sector’s immense potential to transform the economy, create jobs and enhance connectivity. Egypt and the UK share a strong history of cooperation in the transport sector. Today we have many joint projects in different fields, at the forefront is the development of the new electric monorail in Cairo that will transport millions of citizens to and from the new administrative capital every day.”

 

British Ambassador to Egypt Sir Geoffrey Adams said: “I am delighted to see the launch of the DIT/EBCC Infrastructure Committee initiative, which aims to promote UK-Egypt bilateral cooperation and partnerships in the infrastructure sector. Egypt has recently witnessed one of the UK’s biggest investment deals in Africa’s infrastructure sector, with the ongoing development of two electrified monorails in the Cairo metropolitan area - a deal worth $4.16 billion. The UK is keen on further strengthening our commercial ties with Egypt, and I am sure that this initiative will be of great help to both British and Egyptian businesses.”

 

The meeting was chaired on the Egyptian side by Alfred Assil, CEO of Menarail Transport Consultants and on the British side by Gordon Turley, Director of Major Projects at Mott MacDonald. The meeting was attended by major UK companies operating in the transport sector, including Bechtel, Colas Rail, Progress Rail, and the main UK organizations in rail and safety, RSSB, and the Railway Industry Association (RIA).

 

Ian Gray OBE, Chairman of the Egyptian-British Chamber of Commerce said: “There are great opportunities for business between Egypt and the UK, but one of the challenges is bringing companies together. These sector-focused sessions organized by the Department for International Trade (DIT) and our Chamber should help facilitate these connections. The Chamber also recently launched an online networking platform entitled the Trade Accelerator (www.the-TA.com) which has sector-specific groups where Egyptian and British companies can meet to discuss new or ongoing project work.”

 

Each meeting that is organized by the Infrastructure Committee will focus on an infrastructure sub-sector such as transport, housing, urban development, and water, with a rotating meeting agenda aimed at strengthening UK/Egypt bilateral partnerships, increasing foreign direct investment, and promoting the export of services and products in these various sub-sectors of infrastructure.