Egypt, Turkey sign 17 MoUs, aim for $15B trade exchange annually

CAIRO – 4 September 2024: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated Wednesday that economic cooperation and trade composed the main components of Egyptian-Turkish relations, saying that the two countries aim for $15 billion worth of trade annually in the coming years.

Since the volume hit $6.6 billion in 2023, President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi declared, during his visit to Ankara, "we’re working on expanding the scope of the free trade agreement between Egypt and Turkey." Moreover, he lauded the growth of reciprocal investments ($3 billion worth of Turkish investments in Egypt), as well as the increase in the flow of tourists between the two states.

The Egyptian and Turkish presidents attended the signing of 17 memoranda of understanding (MoUs). Two were inked between Turkey’s Polaris and Egypt’s Ministry of Industry and Trade to establish industrial parks in the New Capital and 6th of October City.

Others were signed on higher education and scientific research; railways; civil aviation; telecommunications and information technology (ICT); agricultural technology; healthcare and pharmaceuticals; funding SMEs; capacity-building in the tourism sector; energy; labor and employment; environment protection; and urban development.

There are also MoUs signed between the two countries' foreign ministries, finance ministries, and competition protection authorities.

In a related context, President Erdogan commended the outcomes of his visit to Cairo in February, noting that 2025 would mark the 100th anniversary of launching diplomatic ties between Egypt and Turkey.