Photo: Ministry of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation offical facebook page
The award was presented by Choiseul President Pascal Lorot at a gala dinner attended by Sheikh Jabr bin Mansour bin Jabr Al-Thani, GMG Holding’s chair and CEO, alongside government officials, investors, and economic figures.
After the ceremony, Al-Mashat said the recognition comes amid growing efforts to deepen cooperation between Africa and Gulf states. She said presenting the award at a forum focused on Africa–Gulf ties highlights the rising role of economic diplomacy in the region and reflects Egypt’s push to expand its partnerships.
Al-Mashat thanked the Choiseul Institute for convening the dialogue, calling it an important space for discussing economic integration. She noted that Africa–Gulf engagement dates back to the first Arab–African Summit in Cairo in 1977.
The minister cited rising investment flows into Africa, with foreign direct investment reaching a record $97 billion in 2024—a 75 percent increase from the previous year—and GCC states announcing more than $53 billion in new projects on the continent.
She pointed to Africa’s rapidly growing population and consumer markets, combined with Gulf states’ financial resources and diversification strategies, as drivers of expanding cross-regional investment, innovation, and job creation.
Al-Mashat also referenced major shifts in the continent’s economic landscape, including the activation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, which creates a single market of 1.7 billion people with projected spending of $6.7 trillion by 2030. She said this opens opportunities for joint work in infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, digital transformation, and entrepreneurship.
International cooperation, she added, has become central to national development strategies, and Egypt sees partnerships as essential for advancing priorities in climate action, food security, transport, agriculture, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and women’s economic empowerment.
She said the Africa–Gulf Cooperation Dialogue provides a platform to scale investment and knowledge exchange between the two regions.
The Choiseul Institute previously listed Al-Mashat among the Top 100 Economic Leaders of Africa in 2014 and 2015.
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