Online portal to be launched to promote Egyptian exports

CAIRO – 4 October 2017: Egypt will launch an online portal for investors and businessmen “soon” to promote exports, CEO of the Export Development Authority (EDA) Sherine el-Shorbagi said Wednesday.

The platform will include a detailed map of the global spread of Egyptian products, target markets, international trade agreements, incentives for Egyptian exporters and shipping costs, Shorbagi explained.

Shorbagi added that there will be a mobile application that allows exporters to look for export opportunities in different markets.

“There is an export development strategy that targets increasing exports by 10 percent in five years,” Shorbagi said.

In August, the EDA and the Egyptian Exporters Association (Expolink) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop exports.

The three-year agreement will work on boosting exports, especially to the African market through participating in exhibitions, organizing trade missions, securing information about other markets and offering training services to participants.

Egypt’s trade deficit declined by 48 percent in the first four months of 2017, standing at $8.5 billion, compared to $16.2 billion in the same period last year, Trade Minister Tarek Kabil said in May.

The decline is attributed to a 14 percent hike in exports during that period, standing at $7.43 billion, up from $6.54 billion in the same period of 2016, Kabil added.
Meanwhile, imports from Egypt declined 30 percent, to record $15.9 billion, compared to the $22.7 billion registered in the corresponding period last year.