The Industrial Development Authority (IDA) announced the expansion of Egypt’s ready-made industrial complexes during the coming period, according to the authority’s Chairperson, Mohamed Zalat.
Zalat said that offering these industrial complexes comes as part of a national project that provides job opportunities for the country’s youth.
“In the coming period, the IDA seeks to eliminate bureaucracy and make investment procedures easier for investors,” he said during a press conference on Monday, “In order to facilitate investors, the authority held a community consultation session to study a strategic environmental impact assessment that it prepared for seven industrial complexes that will be launched.”
He added that these industrial complexes range in size from 48 sqm to 600 sqm, and are located in the Alexandria, Red Sea, Beni Suef, Minya, Gharbeya, Luxor and Sohag Govenorates.
Zalat elaborated that necessary measures have been taken to prepare integrated environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) studies for the industrial complexes.
Efforts have also been made to obtain the necessary environmental approvals from the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA), in light of laws and regulations governing this area.
The ESIA is one of the tools need for planning and managing development zones and special economic zones, as a systematic process for assessing the environmental impacts of proposed policies. It also covers strategies to ensure that all environmental considerations are included, in parallel with economic and social considerations during the early phases of planning.
Zalat explained that the authority has conducted the ESIA studies for those industrial complexes in implementation of the provisions of Environmental Law No 4 of 1994 and its amendments and regulations. The authority is also taking into account the provisions of the law relating to the facilitation procedures for granting licences for industrial establishments.
He added that, during the ESIA study phase, the IDA was committed to providing maps of industrial zones indicating the types of industries permitted according to environmental impacts. The authority was also committed to presenting a study of environmental pollution, alongside a plan for the distribution of activities in zones to ensure homogeneity.
“The study should be submitted to the EEAA for review, giving an environmental opinion and issuing lists of environmental loads attached to the integrated environmental plan for the industrial complex,” Zalat said, “These would include a plan for solid waste management, hazardous waste, treatment of industrial wastewater, how to finalise it, and a self-monitoring plan for air quality.”
The project to establish industrial complexes for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and expanding them is a top priority for the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the IDA. It comes as part of the presidential initiative to develop Egypt’s industrial activities.
As a result, the IDA offers ready-made factories with the required facilities, with the possibility of providing low-interest financing to investor, Zalat said.
The authority aims to establish 13 high-quality industrial complexes across Egypt for entrepreneurs and small investors. These will be constructed in cooperation with the Armed Forces Engineering Authority, according to the highest technological and environmental standards.
