The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development has announced the Suez Canal development strategy for the current fiscal year (FY) 2021/22, which is the fourth year of the medium-term plan for sustainable development (2018/19 – 2021/22).
Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, asserted that the Suez Canal is the main artery for the global seaborne trade movement, through which about 10% of the total global trade movement passes, and about 25% of the total movement of imported goods globally, and 100% of the total global trade containers transported by sea between Asia and Europe.
El-Said added that the canal is characterized by its high capacity to accommodate all types of ships, as it can accommodate 100% of the global fleet of container ships, about 93% of the fleet of dry bulk vessels, and about 62% of oil tankers and its derivatives.
At the level of the national economy, the activity of the Suez Canal is one of the main sources of foreign exchange, as it achieves at present annual revenue in the range of $5.84bn.
El-Said indicated that the plan aims to increase the Suez Canal revenues at fixed prices by 5.6%, to raise the output from EGP 93.9bn in 20/2021 to EGP 99.3bn in the year of the plan.
The report of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development stated that to maximize the economic returns of the Suez Canal, it is intended to develop the economic zone and turn it into a high-tech industrial zone and a logistical zone to be a major center for global trade.
Therefore, the comprehensive view of the development of the canal area is based on the adoption of new development projects that will bring about an economic boom, with which the region in its surroundings will turn into a pole of growth, changing the canal’s function from a mere waterway to a development area that includes transit and re-export areas.
The report indicated that the region’s development strategy is based on two main pillars, the first of which is accelerating the pace of digital transformation to link all parties concerned with investing in the economic zone electronically so that licenses are issued in a unified manner through an integrated digital system.
This requires the establishment of a website for each sub-zone of the Suez Canal economic zones, and the provision of various services electronically to facilitate the work of companies and provide information about the zone, its services, and the privileges offered.
