Food industries are amongst the most attractive sectors for foreign investment in Egypt

Chairman of the Chamber of Food Industries in an interview with Commodity Market

El-Gazayerli: The sector has maintained its strength despite the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic and has succeeded in achieving positive growth

16,000 establishments registered with the Chamber's membership, increasing the base of services to attract the informal sector

10% minimum expected growth of the sector during 2022 despite global challenges

EGP 500 bn of investments, exports exceed USD 4 bn for the first time in 2021

The sector ranks third in Egyptian exports, the employment rate is 26%

24.5% contribution to GDP

The Chamber of Food Industries in the Federation of Egyptian Industries plays an important role in developing and supporting companies operating in the sector, especially small and medium companies, and qualifying them to reach the world.

Ashraf El-Gazayerli, Chairman of the Chamber of Food Industries in the Federation of Egyptian Industries, stressed that the food industries sector is one of the most attractive sectors for local and foreign investment, saying, "whoever wants to enter the field of food investment in the world, will not find a better place than the Egyptian market at present."

The sector also achieved exports that exceeded USD 4 bn for the first time in 2021.

El-Gazayerli added that the Chamber is a key partner with the Food Export Council to promote exports, as it is not possible to double exports without a strong industrial system, which is what the Chamber is working on.

He explained that the Chamber is working on several axes that will advance the sector, foremost of which is the automation of the Chamber's services, and the creation of all departments affiliated with the Chamber, such as the Department of Communication and External Relations, the Department of Training and Business Development, the Department of Membership Affairs, and the launch of the My Services and My Information apps.

He stressed that the Chamber gives great attention to rehabilitation and training programs for small and medium companies, including qualifying companies to comply with the food safety system so that the product is healthy and safe for the consumer, and compatible with export requirements, in addition to establishing technical support channels that focus on providing technical support and training on the export system, as well as providing adequate information on export procedures, a comprehensive study of the markets, and negotiating prices.

El-Gazayerli estimated the number of establishments registered with the Chamber at more than 16,000 establishments in different categories, large, medium and small. The chamber is also working to attract informal companies to join the business formally.

He added that the Chamber aims to expand the scope of its services to the largest number of member companies around Egypt, where a protocol was signed with the National Bank of Egypt to organize training and educational courses, prepare a periodical bulletin every four months to provide all information to all current member or new companies and provide financing to companies operating in the sector with simple interest and easy procedures.

The volume of investment in the Egyptian food industries sector is estimated at EGP 500 bn. The sector's exports exceeded USD 4 bn for the first time last year.

El-Gazayerli expected that the food industry sector would achieve growth rates of more than 10% during the current year and that it would witness the entry of new investments, whether local or foreign.

He also said that the Chamber launched the Izdihar program in cooperation with the German Agency (GIZ), which achieved great results over the past years and succeeded in rehabilitating 200 companies, attracting investments, and connecting them to investors and financing bodies to provide technical support in the areas of strategic planning and management, marketing, sustainable operations and operations management, human resource management, business development as well as export.

He added that the Chamber is also working with the USAID to improve the export capabilities of small and medium companies, and to enable the beneficiary companies to obtain some services, such as granting quality certificates to penetrate the target markets and training grants to increase exports for each company, and increase the capabilities of small companies to upgrade export products and support new small companies in how to enter the markets and export.