The meeting
has discussed boosting cooperation in the leather, marble and furniture
sectors, as well as the launch of a shipping line between Egypt and Italy.
Cairo- Nov 2, 2022
Minister of
Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir has met with Michael Caron, the Italian
ambassador in Cairo, to explore means of fostering economic cooperation between
the two countries. Director of the Italian Agency for Development
Cooperation (AICS) Martino Melli attended the meeting.
The two
sides discussed deepening cooperation in the leather, marble and furniture
sectors, as well as the upcoming launch of a maritime
line between Egypt and Italy to boost mutual trade and investments.
“The
government stands ready to support Italian companies operating in the local
market and eliminate all obstacles hindering production,” Samir said, referring
to the Robbiki leather city, one of the key joint cooperation projects.
He further
invited Italian businesses that were forced to halt production completely or
partially due to the recent energy crisis to go into partnerships with Egyptian
counterparts, through manufacturing either in Italy or Egypt and exporting to
MENA markets.
According to
official data, Egypt-Italy trade hit $3.29 billion in 2021- Egypt’s export worth
$1.442 billion. Italy is one of the top investing countries in Egypt, with
investments estimated at $1.707 billion in April and 1,233 firms working in the
fields of industry, agriculture, tourism, services, construction and IT.