Egypt Targets 16 Priority Sectors in New Foreign Investment Strategy
Egypt is preparing to launch a foreign direct investment strategy covering about 16 priority sectors, moving away from general promotion toward approaching investors directly around specific sectors and opportunities, Investment and Foreign Trade Minister Mohamed Farid said.
The strategy, being developed with the World Bank, aims to match investors with opportunities that fit Egypt’s economic priorities, production capacity and export goals. Farid announced it at a meeting in Cairo with 57 correspondents and media representatives from 27 international and Arab organizations, where he said the updated investment map lists about 1,330 opportunities across sectors and governorates. He said Egypt has the readiness and investment appeal, and that the aim is to build an environment that produces success stories and strengthens production and exports. The ministry’s approach rests on four areas: easing business activity, localizing development and supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, targeting and promoting opportunities, and reducing investment risks while mobilizing capital.
On the digital side, the ministry is testing a platform to streamline capital-increase procedures, due to launch in the coming weeks. A separate Economic Entities Platform aims to connect 92 government bodies and bring together services tied to about 486 licenses. Farid said the ministry is also preparing amendments to the executive regulations of Companies Law No. 159 of 1981 to ease mergers, acquisitions and company valuations, widen financing tools and strengthen dispute-resolution committees.
The government is also shaping how the Sovereign Fund of Egypt and its subfunds will work with private investors on priority projects. In some cases the funds could take minority stakes of 10 to 20 percent to lower entry risks and encourage private participation, rather than running projects in place of private firms. The Industrial Investment Fund has finished its setup steps, its board is still being formed, and three to four investment opportunities are under review. The ministry is also developing a trade regulatory sandbox to test ways of modernizing foreign-trade procedures and supporting exports.
Egypt drew 15.5 billion dollars in foreign direct investment in 2025, staying Africa’s largest recipient for a fourth straight year, according to Farid. UN Trade and Development put the figure at about 15 billion dollars, below the exceptional 2024 level, when one large urban-development deal lifted inflows to nearly 47 billion dollars, though Egypt still led the continent. Farid said the government also plans to expand investment zones across governorates, bring smaller enterprises into value chains, and attract companies that can link Egypt’s production base more closely with regional and global supply chains.
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