Editor’s Note
This article provides a concise overview of Egypt’s industrial heritage, tracing its origins to the ingenuity of ancient civilization. It highlights the foundational skills in metallurgy and manufacturing that underpinned early economic and cultural development.
Industry in Egypt dates back to the era of ancient Egyptian civilization, when Egyptians mastered the extraction of minerals such as copper, silver, and gold. They succeeded in smelting and shaping these metals and developed several industries, including agricultural tools, military equipment, pottery, shipbuilding, linen textiles, and oil extraction. They also excelled in the art of jewelry inlaid with precious stones. The artifacts displayed today in historical museums bear witness to the precision of ancient Egyptian artisans and the beauty of their creations.
The industrial sector represents the backbone of economic development, as it is among the fastest-growing sectors. In addition to its vital contribution to national production, it represents about 17.7% of Egypt’s GDP and employs nearly 30% of the total workforce, with about 2.5 million workers spread across 38,000 industrial establishments.
The state aims to elevate the industrial sector so that Egypt becomes a leading industrial nation in the Middle East and Africa. This goal will be achieved by strengthening local production, expanding into high value-added and technology-intensive industries, creating a favorable climate for Arab and foreign investment, and increasing the industrial growth rate to 8%. These efforts are expected to raise the industry’s contribution to GDP to 21%, while boosting exports by 10% annually by 2020.
Egypt has many factors that have fostered industrial growth, including:
- Skilled and affordable labor.
- Capital, especially due to the government’s encouragement of investors by creating a favorable investment climate and offering various incentives and facilities.
- Well-developed transportation networks: Egypt has a diverse system of roads, railways, ports, and airports that facilitate the movement of goods and products to local and international markets.
- The availability of raw materials essential for industrial production:
- Agricultural raw materials: vegetables, fruits, cotton, linen, sesame, sugarcane, and sugar beet.
- Animal raw materials: milk and leather, used in dairy and leather industries.
- Mineral resources: copper, zinc, lead, chromium, iron, nickel, tungsten, phosphate, basalt, aluminum, coal, sulfur, salt, manganese, kaolin, tin, graphite, quartz, tantalum, lithium, and potash — all essential materials for various industrial sectors.
- Industrial Licensing Law: Law No. 15 of 2017 regarding the facilitation of industrial licensing procedures was enacted, aiming to reduce the time required to obtain an industrial license from 634 days to less than two weeks. The law also allows 80% of industries to obtain their licenses by simple notification, while 20% of industries — particularly heavy and capital-intensive industries — must obtain prior approvals.
- Activation of the law on the preference for local products in government contracts, which strengthens sales opportunities for local industries and increases their production, alongside the publication of its executive regulation.
- Finalization of the proposal to transform the Industrial Development Authority into an economic authority, a proposal that has been submitted to Parliament.
- Finalization of the Export Councils Law.
- Finalization of the law establishing the Economic Authority for the Development of the Golden Triangle.
- Food Security Law: Preparation of the draft law establishing the Food Security Authority, which was approved by the Council of Ministers and adopted by Parliament.
Over the past eight years, the industry and trade sectors have seen remarkable progress, with the Egyptian government — under the guidance and with the support of the political leadership — giving unprecedented attention to the development of the industrial sector and the stimulation of export rates. These sectors are considered fundamental pillars of the national economy and a driver of overall economic development in Egypt, in addition to their essential role in achieving social stability through job creation for youth and improving citizens’ standard of living.
The Egyptian industrial sector has recorded a set of positive indicators that place it at the forefront of the national economy. Industry contributes 11.7% to GDP and employs about 28.2% of the total workforce in Egypt. Investments in this sector reached 49 billion Egyptian pounds during the 2020/2021 fiscal year, representing about 6% of total public investment. Furthermore, the value of industrial production amounted to about 982 billion Egyptian pounds in 2021. Egypt also has a diverse industrial base comprising nearly 150 industrial zones spread across all governorates.
