Sisi proposes plan to restructure struggling factories

CAIRO – 5 July 2017: A plan is being put for restructuring struggling factories, especially those owned by the state, to restart production upon the orders of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.

Minister of Health and Population Ahmed Emad El–Din Rady stated to press that special attention will be given to factories manufacturing vital products which are currently mostly imported, which will save the treasury around LE 4.5 billion ($251 million) annually.

Emad El-Din added that foreign companies' share in the local market is 65 percent, while public sector companies' share is just 2.2 percent.

Minister of Industry and Trade Tarek Kabil said in a television interview in May that Egypt has 2,000 operating factories contributing 17.7 percent to the Gross National Income (GNI).

Kabil clarified that a Risk Management Fund has been established to help factories facing debt problems with banks, excluding those implicated in lawsuits with partners.
The fund will finance struggling factories with a total of LE 150 million available.

So far, 135 factories have been selected for the financing program aiming to get factories back in business that have been affected by the economic downturn following the January 25 Revolution.

Minister of Business and Public Sector Ashraf El-Sharkawy announced in mid-June that the eight public holding companies and their 121 subsidiaries achieved net profits of LE 5 billion between July 2016 and April 2017, which is higher than the last fiscal year.

The number of companies generating profits is increasing while the number of companies suffering from losses decreased.

Modernizing and expansion works have already taken place in an aluminum company in Nagaa Hamady city in Upper Egypt, an iron and steel factory in the southern Cairo suburb of Helwan, and Delta Steel Mills in Qalyubia governorate.