Egypt ready to boost cooperation with China under ‘Belt and Road’

Egypt readies itself for closer cooperation with China, especially under the Belt and Road Initiative, the country’s trade and industry minister said on Wednesday.

Speaking at the China-Arab Business Summit 2017, Egyptian Industry Minister Tarek Qabil said that the Egyptian government is willing to strengthen trade and economic cooperation with China, pledging “necessary support to sincere investors.”

The summit was held on Wednesday in Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, as a part of the China-Arab States Expo 2017.

Egypt has been working to improve its investment environment, including tax preferential policies. It also hopes to change the trade imbalance with a series of economic reform measures.

The ancient Silk Road has closely linked Arab countries with China, and its long-standing influence can still be felt today. China has become the largest trading partner with many countries, including Egypt.

Arab countries, sitting at the intersection of the Belt and Road, are important cooperation partners under the initiative. It is a common responsibility to revitalize the prosperity of the ancient Silk Road, especially as the Belt and Road Initiative meets the call for new mechanism and more industrial infrastructure, according to the Egyptian minister.

Egypt has established the Suez Canal Economic Corridor, completed construction of three ports, and built many roads, all which could work with Chinese projects under the Belt and Road Initiative, the minister noted.

In 2016, China signed projects worth some $40 million, up 40 percent. The Chinese projects in Arab countries took up 16 percent of that across the world. China and Arab countries also inked basic infrastructure construction deals worth $46 billion, Qabil revealed at the summit.

Source: People’s Daily Online