In Numbers: Egypt, Algeria Witness Development of Economic Relations

Egyptian-Algerian relations have a long history of cooperation, not only on the political level, but also on the economic level.

Algerian President Abdelmajed Tebboune arrived in Egypt, on Sunday, on a two-day visit, to meet with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, to discuss a number of issues of bilateral cooperation between the two countries, and regional files.

Economic relations between Egypt and Algeria are witnessing a remarkable development in recent years, especially in the fields of trade cooperation, energy, investments and agriculture, in which the two countries have concluded joint bilateral economic agreements.

Bilateral trade between Egypt and Algeria has witnessed steady growth in recent years, with trade exchange recording about $1.2 billion in 2023, an increase of about 15% compared to $1 billion in 2022.

The value of Egyptian exports to Algeria amounted to about $850 million in 2023, according to data from the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics in Egypt.

The most prominent Egyptian exports to Algeria include agricultural products such as citrus fruits, potatoes, fresh fruits, chemical products, especially fertilizers and agrochemicals, building materials such as cement and sanitary ware, and food products such as sugar and food oils.

In contrast, Egyptian imports from Algeria amounted to about $400 million in 2023.

Among the most prominent Egyptian imports from Algeria are natural gas, which Egypt uses to meet its increasing energy needs, refined petroleum materials such as fuels, industrial oils, and dates, where Algeria is one of the largest producers of dates in the world.

The energy sector is a major focus of cooperation between Egypt and Algeria, and Egypt aims to benefit from Algerian gas exports to meet domestic demand, while Egyptian companies seek to work on development projects in the Algerian petroleum sector.

According to the data of the Algerian Ministry of Energy, Egypt is a major partner in several projects, and imports from Algeria a quantity of natural gas worth about $200 million annually.

In the industrial sector, Egyptian companies invest significantly in the Algerian market, especially in the sectors of building materials, such as cement and iron; the Egyptian company "Arab Contractors", for example, has huge projects in Algeria worth more than $100 million, and Egyptian companies also contribute to the pharmaceutical and chemical products sector.

In the agriculture sector, the two countries exchange agricultural products, as the value of Egyptian agricultural exports to Algeria amounted to about $150 million in 2023, and these products include citrus fruits, vegetables and fertilizers.

As for the tourism sector, promoting tourism between the two countries is a priority for bilateral cooperation; in 2023, more than 120,000 Algerian tourists visited Egypt, which constitutes a large proportion of Arab tourists in Egypt.

The volume of Egyptian investments in Algeria amounted to about $500 million until 2023, and investments are concentrated in the fields of construction, industry and energy.

One of the most prominent joint investments: construction projects, as thanks to the investments of companies such as «Arab Contractors», Algeria is witnessing huge construction projects with Egyptian support.

In the field of food industries, Egyptian companies seek to boost food production in Algeria with the aim of exporting to the African market.

The trade cooperation agreement (2021) aims to facilitate the flow of goods between the two countries and ease customs restrictions, and an agreement in the energy sector (2022) under which Algeria pledges to supply Egypt with quantities of natural gas to support its energy needs.

There is also an agreement to promote joint investments (2019) that aims to encourage businessmen from the two countries to invest in joint ventures.

There is also a memorandum of understanding in the fields of agriculture (2023), which aims to strengthen agricultural cooperation and exchange modern technologies to increase agricultural production.