Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat has stated that Egypt is a gateway to Africa thanks to its strategic location, and efforts made by the state to transform it into a logistical and commercial center in the African continent, Middle East and North Africa region. Moreover, free trade agreements signed with Egypt provide a great opportunity to reach more than 1.5bn consumers in Africa. The minister participated as a keynote speaker in a conference of Austrian Economic Chambers within the framework of the Austrian Export Day 2023 with the participation of thousands of private sector companies, in the Austrian capital, Vienna. Al-Mashat praised strong bilateral economic cooperation between Egypt and Austria, especially after the signing of letter of intent between the two sides last April 2023, with the aim of expanding and strengthening relations between the two countries in fields of economic, trade and technical cooperation within the framework of the Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation She added that thanks to the recent economic reforms adopted by the political leadership in Egypt, the Egyptian economy was able to maintain stable growth rates and show resilience towards multiple challenges it has faced recently, particularly COVID-19 and the Russian-Ukrainian war. Al-Mashat also added that the government is moving forward in taking many steps that create favorable conditions to stimulate economic growth and create sustainable job opportunities in many priority sectors, encouraging foreign direct investment. In addition, issue a State Ownership Policy Document that defines a future vision regarding empowering private sector and issuing the golden license for companies, especially those that contribute to promoting development efforts, which opens more opportunities for foreign and local private sector. The Minister called on Austrian companies to explore investment opportunities in Egypt, especially in the development of projects announced by the government, including Suez Canal Economic Zone, Golden Triangle, New Administrative Capital, and new cities.
