Investments in Upper Egypt’s Sohag reach LE 10B in 2 years

CAIRO – 3 March 2018: Investments in the Upper Egyptian governorate of Sohag surpassed LE 10 billion in the last two years, in addition to investments in the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) sector, Sohag Investors Association announced Saturday.

Head of the association Mahmoud el-Shandaweely said that there is a demand to invest in a number of fields in Sohag, namely mining industries, cement, steel and textiles.

He added that there are 600 requests for land allocation in Sohag, of which only 60 have been approved by the Industrial Development Authority (IDA).

Shandaweely said that developing roads in Upper Egypt encourages development in the area.

On the stalled factories, He said that 30 percent of small factories and companies are financially distressed and in need of funding to reopen.

He added that factories and companies also face difficulties in marketing their products and obtaining work permits.

Egypt has been prioritizing the development of Upper Egypt recently. In Febuary, the Cabinet has approved a draft law to establish an authority for Upper Egypt Development, which will be located in Aswan governorate

Government’s investments in northern Upper Egypt reached LE 6.92 billion during the current fiscal year 2017/18, representing 3.6 percent of total investments.

Minya governorate is the top recipient of these investments, with 48.9 percent, followed by Beni Seuf and Fayoum.

In January, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi inaugurated a number of development projects in the Upper Egypt governorates, including housing projects and water stations.