A host of private companies in Egypt have signed seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the government of Uzbekistan to form investment partnerships in the spheres of pharmaceuticals, energy, electricity, spinning, weaving, and health care. This came during the time of the Egyptian-Uzbek Business Forum, which was held on Saturday in Cairo. In the meeting, there was the participation of various Egyptian and Uzbek businessmen who are working in the sectors of industry, tourism, electronics, pharmaceutical industries, and electrical products.
The forum was held ahead of the official visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the capital of Egypt on Sunday and witnessed the presentation of promotional offers on investment opportunities that are available in Uzbekistan and Egypt.
The Uzbek President attended a roundtable with the Egyptian businessman in the presence of Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat of Egypt. The roundtable was part of the first visit of the President to Egypt, which was held in light of the distinguished relations between the two nations and the mutual high-level visits to further advance their relations on all levels, and also taking into account the previous visit of the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, to Uzbekistan, which witnessed the signing of several documents of collaboration.
Al-Mashat expressed that the aspiration of her country is for more cooperative work with the government of Uzbekistan and stressed the importance of holding the joint business forum and the roundtable to ameliorate the trade and investment partnership between the two nations.
The Egyptian Minister said that the MoUs that are signed will enhance the economic ties between Egypt and Uzbekistan and provide an opportunity for both countries to take advantage of investment opportunities and comparative advantages in multiple economic sectors, based on a statement issued by the international cooperation ministry.
Currently, Al-Mashat said that preparation is underway in order to hold the seventh session of the Egyptian-Uzbek Joint Committee for cooperation in the economic, technological, and scientific spheres in Tashkent by the end of this year. On the sidelines of the committee meeting, the next edition of the Egyptian-Uzbekistan Business Forum is set to be held.
Minister of Trade and Industry of Egypt Ahmed Samir met the Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Jamshid Khodjaev, on Monday. The volume of trade exchange between Egypt and Uzbekistan last year reached $49.9 million, which is up 7 percent from the $46.6 million that was achieved the year before, as said by Samir.
