G20 and Japanese investments in Egypt

CAIRO – 29 June 2019: The G20 summit hosted in Osaka, Japan, concludes its fourteenth round Saturday, where dozens of world leaders participate in a break-neck schedule of high profile meetings.

Egypt is not a member of the G20; however, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is attending the two-day summit in his capacity as the chairman of the African Union. Egypt’s participation in the summit has been underscored for its regional importance, and vision in enhancing development of the African continent.

It is the first time for Japan to host the G20 summit. On the sidelines of the summit, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met with President Sisi, where both expressed keenness to enhance bilateral cooperation in various fields specially education, culture, technology, energy, and transportation.

In the below lines, Egypt Today summarizes Japanese investments in Egypt:

1- Direct Japanese investments in Egypt are estimated at $420 million.
2- Around 106 Japanese companies are operating in Egypt.
3- The value of Japanese investments in Egypt increased during past financial year by 74 percent.
4- Japanese companies work in different fields including: industrial sector, electronics and cars.
5- Japan acquires 13 percent of total Asian investments in Egyptian market.
6- Total volume of trade exchange between both countries increased by 30.5 percent, reaching $1.26 billion.
7- Japan ranks the 31st in the list of states investing in Egypt.

Trade exchange bet. Egypt, G20 member states hit $66.8B in 2018

CAIRO - 27 June 2019: The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) said that the volume of trade exchange between Egypt and the Group of 20 major economies increased by 16.6 percent to register $66.8 billion in 2018, compared to $57.2 billion in 2017.

Sisi, Abe meeting on G20 sidelines

Abe received Egyptian President Sisi Thursday in Osaka, where they held a session of talks in the presence of delegations from the two countries. Sisi arrived in Osaka to attend the 2019 Group of 20 (G20) summit set to be held on June 28-29.

Abe referred to Japan's contribution in the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is considered a symbol for cultural cooperation between the two countries aiming to support the tourism sector in Egypt. He also affirmed Japan's keenness to cooperate with Egypt in promoting comprehensive development, within the framework of Egypt's 2013 strategy for sustainable development.

For his part, President Sisi affirmed his appreciation of the strong and fruitful relations with Japan, congratulating the Japanese government and people as new Emperor Naruhito officially assumed the Japanese throne in May.

Both leaders further addressed preparations for the seventh Tokyo International Conference for African Development (TICAD) set to be held in August.

“Egypt, by participating in the summit, will be able to provide an important model in education, and a vision on human resources in African and Middle East,” Japanese Ambassador to Egypt Masaki Noke previously said.

On the sidelines of the summit, President Sisi held bilateral talks with several leaders including: Russian President Vladimir Putin, Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman, and Argentine president Mauricio Macri.