2023-09-30 17:12:12
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said on Saturday that Egyptians have an opportunity for change in the upcoming presidential elections, while Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly confirmed that Egypt will be able next year to produce all its needs of petroleum products such as gasoline and diesel, according to what was reported by the “News Agency.” Arab world”.
In a conference entitled “The Story of a Homeland… Between Vision and Achievement,” which aimed to highlight the “achievements” of the past period, held in the New Administrative Capital, Al-Sisi told the Egyptians: “You have an opportunity for change in the upcoming elections.”
After Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, in his speech at the conference, elaborated on the projects that occurred during the past nine years, Al-Sisi said: “I will not comment on the many, big, and great words that the Prime Minister explained… I have one word that I want to say to the people… This is what We did it, and you have a chance to change in the next elections.”
Last Monday, the National Elections Authority announced that presidential elections would be held within the country on December 10th, over a period of 3 consecutive days.
Al-Sisi has not yet officially announced that he will run in the upcoming presidential elections, but a number of political parties have announced their support for his candidacy for a new term. These parties, including the “Future of the Nation” Party, which has a majority in the House of Representatives, the “Free Egyptians” Party, and the “Hamat Watan” Party, have already begun collecting the necessary agencies for Sisi’s candidacy.
The Egyptian President also stressed the importance of attracting Egyptian and foreign investors to increase the volume of investment in various sectors in the country.
Al-Sisi said at the conference: “Attracting the Egyptian or foreign private sector to invest will reduce the pressure on the dollar… We buy petroleum derivatives in dollars, production requirements and foodstuffs in dollars and sell them in Egyptian pounds.”
He added: “We need to convince investors and foreigners to turn to the 150 projects identified by the state,” referring to projects that the Egyptian state has given priority under which it receives a tax exemption between 10 and 15 years.
Tourism and the Suez Canal
For his part, Madbouly confirmed that Egypt will be able next year to produce all of its petroleum needs, such as gasoline and diesel. He added: “We will continue to import crude oil, but it will be refined inside the country.”
Madbouly added that Egypt aims to increase the number of tourists from 15 million annually by the end of the year to 30 million within 5 years.
Egypt has achieved a recovery in tourism in the past few months, and received 7 million tourists in the first half of this year.
On the other hand, the Prime Minister said that the Suez Canal duplication project “eliminated” the idea of alternative routes.
Egypt plans to complete the project to develop the southern sector of the canal at the end of this year. The project aims to double the southern sector of the canal with a length of 10 kilometers, adding to a new branch of the Suez Canal that was built in 2015, increasing its length from 72 to 82 kilometers, in addition to expanding and deepening the southern sector, according to what official media reported.
The Suez Canal is a major source of foreign exchange for Egypt.
President Sisi said during the conference that “Suez Canal revenues will reach $10.5 billion by the end of 2023.”
The head of the Suez Canal Authority, Osama Rabie, announced in late June that the canal achieved revenues of $9.4 billion in the fiscal year 2022-2023.
The G20 summit hosted by India earlier this month witnessed the announcement of the signing of a memorandum of understanding to establish an economic corridor linking India with the Middle East and Europe.
The project includes constructing railway lines and connecting ports to increase the passage of goods and services, enhance trade exchange between the participating parties, and extend pipelines to transport electricity and hydrogen to enhance global energy security.
Growth and investment
For her part, Minister of Planning Hala Al-Saeed said at the conference that Egypt aims to achieve sustainable annual growth ranging between 7 and 8 percent, noting that despite the diversity of sources of growth, it is fluctuating, unsustainable, and more vulnerable to shocks.
The minister added that “the widening gap between imports and exports over the past 20 years has reduced growth opportunities.” She stated that Egypt aims to increase private sector investments from 36 percent to 65 percent of total investments by 2030.
The Egyptian government aims to increase exports to $100 billion annually over the next five years, and attract private investments worth $40 billion by 2026, while continuing its plans to increase the role of the private sector in the economy, according to previous government data.
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