Egyptian Governor Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Tarek Amer decided to exclude import operations of the programmes, applications, computers, and computer accessories from the 100% cash coverage. CBE had placed a number of restrictions on imported goods, including the requirement to pay 100% of the value of the imported consignment. This was viewed by IT companies as an obstacle that negative impact on its activities.
Chairman of the General Division of Computers and Software at the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce (FEDCOC) Khalil Hassan Khalil said that exclusion of computers and applications from the previous decision will lead to managing the supply system and rather than the demand system. This contributes to the availability of computers, computer accessories, necessary software and applications at affordable prices.
It would also help Egyptian companies recover from the recession they suffered and maintain the large investments made by the state over the past years in this important sector. The state depends on these investments to stimulate economic and community development as the sector’s contribution to the gross national product (GNP) increased from about EGP 48bn in 2010 to about EGP 66bn in 2014, a contribution rate of 4.1%.
Khalil said this decision will help increase Egypt’s competitiveness indicators, of which IT has become a major by-component. Major contributing facts affecting their competitiveness are: laws related to IT, availability of modern technologies, acquisition of personal computers, application of technology within institutions, and the importance of technology to the government.
