Egypt's National Dialogue drafts recommendations on ways to deal with price hikes

CAIRO – 12 September 2023: A closed session titled "Price Hikes and Ways to Alleviate Citizens' Economic Burdens" kicked off Tuesday at the National Training Academy in Giza within the National Dialogue's economic axis.

The meeting's goal is articulating the recommendations and proposals put forward during public sessions, combining them together in a draft that will be submitted to the president of the republic.

The National Dialogue submitted in August private investment recommendations that emanated from the public discussions within the economic axis and that had been drafted by committees consisting of specialists.

The recommendations include the appointment of a minister for the economy who would be in charge of investment, funding, leveraging resources, and coordinating economic policies on the national level. Another recommendation is turning the General Mineral Resources Authority from a regulatory entity into an economic one.

Participants in the dialogue suggested preparing an easy guide on investment in Egypt covering all aspects and sectors, and making them available in multiple languages locally and abroad.

They also urged making lands allocated for industrial activities not affiliated with the New Urban Authorities so that the investor would deal with one entity only in charge of the industrial sector.

The recommendations consist of establishing more free zones, and developing the investment map, displaying it in a clear and simplified way, and updating it regularly. In a related context, every entity concerned with dealing with investors must have an online platform indicating all the procedures an investor needs to go through, and the documents they have to prepare.

On another level, the formalization of informal SMEs can be encouraged by financing them through certain funds in return for a percentage of revenues.

Proposals included the activation of Article 22 of the Investment Law, as it regulates the role of accredited consulting firms. That is in addition to allowing representatives of different administrative entities to act without getting back to their departments.

The last recommendation is that banks should assess the feasibility studies submitted by investors to acquire funding in no more than 45 days.