Amazon: E-commerce in Egypt is booming

E-commerce activity is significantly growing in Egypt and Amazon is planning to boost its investments in the country by extending its nationwide presence, said its general manager Omar Elsahy said on Wednesday.

During the pandemic in the wake of the precautionary and social distancing measures, e-commerce has boomed in Egypt as it played a pivotal role in providing basic commodities and needs to citizens. For this, Amazon has added more than 362 terms to its general requirements for safety in preparing and delivering products and services to clients, Elsahy further told Amwal Al Ghad.

As regards to new investments, Amazon Egypt official further said the company had developed and carried out expansions in its 10th of Ramadan City Warehouse, which was inaugurated by Egyptian Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly last September. It has also inaugurated more than 13 distribution outlets and plans to open more nationwide, Elsahy noted.

​Amazon plans to expand its investments in Egypt in 2022 and upcoming years, with the aim to construct new warehouses in west and east Cairo, Alexandria and Banha, and to open a new customer service centre in Cairo, he added.

However, e-commerce startups in Egypt need to have an ecosystem to develop their business and prosper, Elsahy said, adding that the Egyptian government has already started taken steps to facilitate measures.

Elsahy’s remarks came on the sidelines of Amazon’s first event focused on technology and innovation in Egypt, CAI TECH 2022: Design @ Scale. The conference showcased innovation and best practices, where executives shared knowledge with local and regional Amazon leaders. It tackled various topics, including building software solutions at scale, and shared career opportunities for local software engineers, developers, and applied data scientists at Amazon Egypt.

Elsahy inaugurated the event alongside Faisal Rafi, Director of Technology for Amazon’s Middle East and North Africa region (MENA), and Omar Halabieh, Head of Technology of Amazon Payment Services Payments for MENA. The CAI TECH 2022 focused on Amazon’s culture of innovation and customer-centricity, career growth, and the importance of diversity and inclusion within Amazon, notably towards women leaders in technology.

Faisal Rafi, Director of Technology for Amazon’s Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) has tackled how Amazon builds world-class services for customers in the region to meet their everyday needs. “Amazon is a company of builders. This first event perfectly demonstrates the synergy that exists between innovation and customer-centric thinking. We are very proud and thankful of the exchange that took place, as our teams at Amazon are engaging with incredible tech talent from Egypt.” Rafi added.

Meanwhile, Omar Halabieh, Head of Technology at Amazon Payment Services Payments for MENA, has showcased the journey of digital payments and career growth opportunities at Amazon Payment Services.

“There has been some major development in digital payment solutions, which has empowered thousands of local Egyptian businesses over the years.”

“We look forward to growing the next generation of builders in the digital payments space right here in Egypt to continue to bring effective solutions to all types of merchants, big and small.” Halabieh concluded.