Egyptian African Business Association Meet team from African Development Bank Country Office | African Development Bank

The African Development Bank’s new Country Manager for Egypt, Abdourahmane Diaw, has received a delegation from the Egyptian African Business Association (EABA).

The visit, led by Dr. Yousry El Sharkawy, president of the association, took place on March 14. He was accompanied by Dr. Mohamed Mandour, head of the Government Relations Committee, Mostafa Alamir, Secretary General, and other members including Arab Contractors Facility Management and Zworld holding.

The meeting was a follow-up to an Industrial and Trade Business Opportunity Forum in February 2023 organized by the African Development Bank in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The teams discussed areas to support the expansion of Egyptian businesses into the rest of Africa and ways to capitalize on bank-funded operations. To maintain an active relationship, the two sides will create a task force that will meet periodically to explore possible areas of cooperation.

Diaw praised the government for the bold steps it is taking to strengthen its integration in the African continent to encourage trade and investment.

“The bank promotes and supports major Egyptian corporate players through its ‘African Champions’ initiative and connects Egyptian companies and major projects in Egypt with potential partners and investors through the Africa Investment Forum. But given EABA’s sizable membership and industry coverage, partnering with the association will enable the bank to reach a substantial portion of Egypt’s private sector,” he added.

Acknowledging the bank’s convening power and footprint on the continent, El Sharkawy said he looks forward to the institution’s support in achieving the association’s goals. “We want the African Development Bank, our partner of choice, to work with us to deliver on our new ideology, particularly to foster stronger and fruitful relationships in other African countries,” he noted.

The Egyptian African Business Association was established in 2019 with the aim of increasing cooperation between the Egyptian private sector and African counterparts. It is composed of 22 industrial committees representing all industrial sectors. Its membership consists of companies and national banks. It leverages its vast network of 150,000 African businesses to advocate for trust building, information sharing and collaboration to increase trade between Africa and Africa.

EABA has an active Memorandum of Understanding with 10 African Chambers of Commerce, it promotes value chain links through targeted interventions and field visits that connect farmers with manufacturers (olive oil and olive oil), high-level business community forums (such as the Nigerian Businessmen Forum that 145 important Nigerian business people in 2022).

EABA plans to host the third edition of Africa Agriculture Day on September 27^e April, an annual tradition, highlighting the need to gather African countries for intra-African trade in essential crops and inputs for food security.

The Bank will continue to work with EABA to explore areas of potential collaboration and support for Egyptian private sector growth domestically and across Africa, Diaw said.