CAIRO: Egypt’s Prime Minister has welcomed a proposal from Paris to establish a French-Egyptian industrial zone in Alexandria, Board Member of the French Chamber of Commerce in Cairo, Hassan Bahnam, told The Cairo Post.
Bahnam statement came on the sideline of a roundtable hosted by the French Chamber of Commerce in Egypt Sunday, to discuss investment climate in Egypt.
“During his visit to Cairo earlier in October, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls discussed a proposal to establish a joint industrial zone in Alex, with his Egyptian counterpart Sherif Ismail, who welcomed it,” Bahnam told The Cairo Post.
Upon reaching an initial agreement, Egypt will be responsible for land allocations, providing all facilities, infrastructure for the French companies, who will in turn establish new production lines with their know-how and direct their production to the domestic market, he added.
“The proposed industrial zone will also turn Egypt to an export hub for Middle East and South Africa market,” Bahnam continued.
French investments in Egypt surged to 4.3 billion Euros ($4.93 billion,) while trade volume between the two countries amounted to $3 billion in 2014