Friday 18 Oct
Walid Gamal El Din, Chairman of the General Authority of the Suez Canal Economic Zone, participated in two sessions at the Egyptian-French Business Forum in Marseille: "The Business Climate in Egypt: Challenges, Opportunities, and Best Practices," and "Trade and Investment Opportunities in the Maritime Sector." He also held several meetings with French companies.
In his second stop of his
promotional tour in France, in the city of Marseille, Gamal El-Din presented the investment opportunities available to the French business community in the
targeted sectors, especially cooperation in the maritime and logistics sectors,
with the aim of attracting new French investment flows to the Suez Canal
Economic Zone.
Following the opening ceremony of
the forum, he reviewed the significant progress made in
upgrading the infrastructure within the Suez Canal Economic Zone's industrial
zones and affiliated ports to world-class standards. He emphasized the
establishment of robust environmental and legal frameworks to create an
attractive and sustainable investment climate, coupled with financial and
non-financial incentives. The strategic location offers the advantage of
reduced transportation costs, while the availability of diverse energy sources
and skilled human capital at competitive prices.
Additionally, he highlighted the
efforts to digitize services and implement a one-stop-shop system for issuing
all construction and operation licenses, streamlining the process for
investors. He also mentioned the strategic partnerships with international institutions
and global companies to expedite the production of green fuels and their export
to European markets. The session was attended by Hossam Heiba, CEO of the
General Authority for Investment and Free Zones, Naguib Sawiris, Chairman of
Orascom Investment Holding, Frederic Sulaiman, lawyer and founding partner of
Sulaiman and Hashish Law Firm, and Pascal Forth, Head of the Economic
Department at the French Embassy in Egypt.
Gamal El-Din also
participated in a session titled "Opportunities for Trade and Investment
in the Maritime Sector." During this session, he highlighted the
capabilities of the Authority's ports and their strategic location, which have
attracted significant interest from global port operators. One notable example
is the cooperation between the Economic Zone and the French maritime giant CMA
CGM, which operates a container terminal at Sokhna Port as part of a global
port operator alliance.
He also emphasized the importance
of the development works that are nearing completion in the various ports of
the Authority, which led to an increase in the areas of berths, yards, and
deepening the draft, and also increased the readiness of the ports to provide
ship bunkering services with conventional and green fuel through the ports of
Sokhna and East Port Said.
He pointed out that the
development works of Arish Port contributed to its readiness to receive all
international aid directed to the Gaza Strip in light of the current events, in
addition to being a center for exporting cement and clinker from North Sinai,
which confirms the strategic importance of the ports of the Economic Zone
regionally and internationally.
Gamal El-Din also visited the Port of Marseille, where an agreement was signed to establish cooperation between the Port of Marseille and the ports of the Economic Zone in all aspects of port and logistics development. Additionally, he met with representatives of several French companies involved in maritime transport and logistics to explore potential collaborations within the Suez Canal Economic Zone. Furthermore, he engaged with a group of representatives from companies operating in various targeted industrial sectors.
