Egypt has become the newest member of the BRICS, a group of emerging economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Egypt’s business community welcomed the move, saying it would open new opportunities for trade and investment with the BRICS countries and other regions.
Ahmed Abdel Hamid, the head of the Building Materials Division of the Federation of Industries, said that Egypt’s accession to the BRICS was a positive step towards development, trade liberalization, and export growth. He said that the BRICS alliance aims to exchange goods and increase trade volume and that Egypt would be a strong addition to the group.
Abdel Hamid added that joining the BRICS would also end the unipolar domination of global trade and usher in a new era of multi-currency transactions. He stressed that Egypt needs to be flexible and proactive to benefit from its membership in the BRICS.
Ahmed Al-Zayyat, a member of the Egyptian Businessmen’s Association (EBA), said that Egypt’s membership in the BRICS would give Egyptian products an advantage in accessing and penetrating the markets of the BRICS countries and other new markets. He also said that easing capital transactions between local banks would encourage more foreign direct investments to Egypt, especially from China.
Al-Zayyat said that joining the BRICS would help reduce pressure on the local currency and improve its value, as well as improve the balance of payments and trade balance. He added that Egypt has improved its infrastructure and logistical services in the past five years, which enables it to become a commercial and logistical hub linking Africa and Europe.
Ahmed El-Shennawy, the vice-chairperson of the Sustainability Committee at EBA, highlighted four main axes that Egypt needs to focus on to achieve comprehensive economic returns from its membership in the BRICS. He said that these axes are: enhancing political relations with the BRICS countries, increasing trade exchange and cooperation agreements, attracting more investments and technology transfer, and promoting sustainable development and social responsibility.
El-Shennawy pointed out that the four axes focus on trade and investment, as Egypt’s accession to the BRICS bloc provides new opportunities for trade and investment with other member states through new opportunities that enable Egypt to have better trade facilities and improve access to large markets such as Brazil, Russia, India, and China.
In terms of economic cooperation, El-Shennawy disclosed that Egypt’s accession to the BRICS bloc could lead to strengthening economic cooperation between Egypt and other member states in areas such as technology, renewable energy, and infrastructure through the exchange of knowledge and experiences in these areas, which could contribute to improving the competitiveness of Egypt’s industry.
He said: “The important factor remains to set an agenda and a clear plan for dealing with all government agencies and business organizations to achieve Egypt’s vision of comprehensive development. Moreover, the BRICS, with its resources and capabilities, has become a focal point and a new transformation to confront the unipolar pole and reduce burdens on emerging economies that have been affected by current economic challenges and crises.”
