El-Sisi made these remarks in a meeting Sunday evening in Doha, which also included Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari, Minister of Municipality Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah, Minister of State for Foreign Trade Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Sayed, and Chairman of the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim Al Thani.
Several major Qatari companies and representatives of the Qatar Businessmen Association attended the meeting.
According to the Egyptian Presidency, El-Sisi began the meeting by acknowledging the significant global challenges of recent years—from the COVID-19 pandemic to sharp fluctuations in food and energy markets and ongoing global trade tensions.
He stressed that these challenges require unified efforts to boost Arab economic integration and deepen inter-Arab cooperation, emphasizing the critical role of the business community in this effort.
The Egyptian president invited Qatari companies and investors to expand their investments in Egypt, underscoring Egypt's attractiveness as an investment destination due to its strategic location, competitive labour costs, favourable energy prices, free trade agreements with Arab and African nations, and investor-friendly legislative environment.
He outlined various investment opportunities across sectors, including ICT, manufacturing, renewable energy, and tourism.
Furthermore, El-Sisi highlighted Egypt's focus on localizing industries and advancing high-tech sectors, especially artificial intelligence.
He affirmed Egypt's openness to various forms of partnership with interested Qatari investors, pointing out that Egypt's stability and security are rooted in tight security measures and a society that values stability and development.
Moreover, the Egyptian president noted that Egypt continues implementing massive infrastructure projects, including new smart cities, upgraded transport networks, and integrated international logistics corridors near seaports.
Similarly, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El-Khatib delivered a comprehensive presentation on Egypt's infrastructure development over the past decade, revealing that Egypt has invested approximately $550 billion in infrastructure, including 7,000 km of new roads, new ports, and 24 new cities.
El-Khatib stressed the government's commitment to creating a more attractive and competitive investment climate, supported by monetary policies aimed at curbing inflation and promoting economic stability, as well as fiscal reforms to reduce non-tax burdens on investors and simplify procedures.
In addition, the minister of trade and investment outlined Egypt's trade strategy, which aims to increase exports to over $145 billion by 2030 and place Egypt among the top 50 countries on global trade indices within three years and among the top 20 by 2030.
He reaffirmed the state's commitment to empowering the private sector to contribute 70 percent of economic activity, highlighting the strategic role of Egypt's Sovereign Fund. He also stressed that the government was working toward ending preferential treatment for state entities in investment fields.
Moreover, El-Sisi and Qatari business leaders held an open dialogue, discussing ways to boost trade and investment cooperation.
The Egyptian president stated that although Egypt has faced economic challenges recently, the government has undertaken necessary reforms.
He reassured investors that there are no longer restrictions on repatriating profits in foreign currency and that steps are being taken to streamline licensing processes through initiatives like the one-stop-shop and the "golden license."
In addition, El-Sisi noted that Egypt is working to double its annual tourist arrivals from 16 to 30 million, capitalizing on its rich tourism assets.
He invited Qatari investors to visit Egypt's logistics hubs—seven of which connect the Red Sea and the Mediterranean via strong road networks—and consider investment opportunities in this promising sector.
Furthermore, the Egyptian president revealed that Egypt has prepared 2 to 3 million feddans (acres) of land for agricultural reclamation and is open to partnerships, particularly with Qatari investors.
He also invited investment in Egypt's automotive industry, especially electric vehicles, citing the country's industrial capacity and large domestic market.
Moreover, El-Sisi highlighted opportunities for Qatari investment in education, including university construction; healthcare, particularly world-class hospitals; tourism infrastructure, including hotel development and new resort cities; telecommunications and information technology, including local smartphone manufacturing; and renewable energy, with Egypt targeting 42 percent of its energy mix to come from renewable sources by 2030.
In conclusion, the Egyptian president praised the significant increase in momentum of Egyptian-Qatari economic relations in recent years. He closed the meeting by extending a message to the Qatari business community: "The Egyptian people welcome you as partners in our journey toward development and prosperity."
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi arrived in Doha Sunday morning at his first stop on a Gulf tour that includes Qatar and Kuwait.
Qatari Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani received El-Sisi at Doha's Hamad International Airport.
According to the Egyptian presidency, following El-Sisi's arrival, the two leaders discussed bilateral ties and efforts to restore the Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
This is El-Sisi's second visit to Qatar since assuming the presidency in 2014; his first occurred in September 2022.
Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) released a new report highlighting significant growth in economic ties between Egypt and Qatar on the occasion of the presidential visit to the Gulf state.
According to the report, the trade exchange between the two countries surged to $128.4 million in 2024, up from $72.1 million in 2023.
Egyptian exports to Qatar increased notably to $93.4 million in 2024 compared to $44.3 million the previous year. Imports from Qatar also climbed to $35 million, up from $27.8 million in 2023.
The report also reiterated previous figures showing Qatari investments in Egypt reached $618.5 million during the 2023/2024 fiscal year, up from $548.2 million in 2022/2023. Conversely, Egyptian investments in Qatar doubled to $171.5 million from $86.8 million over the same period.
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