A number of French companies that work in the fields of livestock, poultry, and dairy industries discussed with their Egyptian counterparts injecting new investments in the Egyptian market, French ambassador to Egypt, Stéphane Romatet, told Daily News Egypt.
Representatives of about 15 companies visited Egypt on June 25, 2019, where they had successful discussions with Egypt’s Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Ezz El-Din Abu-Steit, about the joint opportunities to boost cooperation in the agriculture sector, the ambassador added.
The company representatives also participated in a seminar that was organised by the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Egypt (CCI Francaise en Egypte) where they met with several Egyptian counterparts, the ambassador highlighted. He asserted that French companies are confident that there are many opportunities in Egypt to partner with Egyptian investors.
Egypt has great ambitions in the field of agriculture, the ambassador said, adding, “Egypt has a large population, 100 million people who need to be fed. That’s why Egypt aims at developing the agriculture sector. Egypt also wants to increase its agricultural exports to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and Europe.”
France is a great agriculture power especially in the field of livestock, poultry, and dairy industries, the French ambassador said. He added that, “we have decided to establish a joint partnership in the field of agriculture. We want the two ministries of agriculture to cooperate in their field of expertise and food safety.”
The French ambassador asserted the intention of the embassy to encourage the professionals from both sides to become increasingly connected, develop their knowledge exchange, and invest more in Egypt.
French companies have visited some Egyptian farms to discuss boosting economic cooperation and closely identify the potential, the ambassador asserted, adding, “We have a longstanding finance tradition in the agriculture sector through the Agence Francaise de Développement (AFD). We have proposed the ministries of agriculture continue this financial support.”
Egypt is negotiating with France €35m in new funding for Egypt’s agricultural small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the French ambassador to Egypt told DNE in June. He continued to say that France will share its strong experience in the field of agriculture and related industries with the Egyptian side.
Egypt has exerted great economic reform efforts, helping it to be one of the biggest countries in the Mediterranean region in terms of growth rates, the ambassador said during previous media reports.
