Egyptian-Kuwaiti investments highlighted ahead of PM's visit to Cairo

CAIRO – 20 October 2019: Kuwaiti Prime Minister Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah's two-day visit starting Sunday is set to strengthen the bilateral ties between the two countries especially at the economic level and investments.

Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak, will be accompanied, during his visit to Egypt, with a large delegation comprising a number of ministers, representatives of Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and businessmen, local media reported.

The Kuwaiti prime minister and his delegation are scheduled to meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.

During the meetings, the two sides will sign several agreements covering some areas of cooperation between the two countries, especially the investments sector.

The Egyptian-Kuwaiti relations are based on cooperation and understanding on all issues.

According to the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas, economic relations between the two countries have witnessed a steady growth throughout history. Kuwaiti investments in Egypt rank high among existing investments as it exceeds $15 billion.

Tourism and aviation between the two countries have witnessed a similar growth reflected in the increase in the number of Kuwaiti tourists to around 200,000 tourists on 64 weekly flights between.

A large Kuwaiti community is also inhabiting Egypt, including about 20,000 Kuwaitis, mostly undergraduate and post-university students. In return, Kuwait hosts around 700,000 Egyptian nationals.

In the investment sector, Kuwait is Egypt's third largest trading partner in the Arab world after the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Deputy Prime Minister Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah said in the 12th session of the Kuwaiti-Egyptian joint committee that investments exceeded $15 billion.

The volume of Egyptian exports to Kuwait between 2010 and 2018 amounted to about 984.2 million dinars (about $3.2 billion), while the volume of Kuwaiti exports to Egypt reached 165.3 million dinars (about $543 million), according to statistics of Kuwait's Central Statistics Bureau.

The Kuwaiti prime minister's visit comes in the context of continuous visits between the two countries to enhance bilateral cooperation.

The Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development has covered most of the developmental fields in Egypt during the past years, according to Al-Qabas. The total number of projects financed by the Fund in Egypt since its establishment until September 30 this year is about 50 projects with a total cost of one billion dinars (about 3.4 billion dollars), while the number of grants and technical assistance amounted to about 18 grants worth 17.3 million dinars (about 56 million dollars).

The various projects financed by the Fund in Egypt included development of maritime transport, the pharmaceutical industry, sanitation, power and water plants, the expansion of natural gas networks, and the development of railways.