Plan to establish foreign trade centre to help promote exports
Egypt, Economics, 5/23/2001

The government's policy to promote exports includes support of the private sector through the establishment of an Egyptian center for foreign trade in cooperation with Japanese institutions specialized in the promotion of foreign trade and training of exporters on the latest techniques used in marketing.

Minister of Economy and foreign Trade, Youssef Boutros Ghali has underlined the government's plan in this respect by providing assistance to the private sector to play its due role in the promotion of exports and removing any obstacles standing in its way to achieve this objective inside and outside the country.

He said that the policy would include providing all information necessary on the foreign companies and target markets and the procedures to conclude contracts with international marketing firms with the assistance of the trade representation offices abroad as well as intensifying trade and export promotion missions to the concerned markets and setting up permanent centers for the Egyptian products at the most important trade centers in foreign countries in coordination with some firms running big department stores and trade chains as well as shopping centers.

"The policy encourages participation in international specialized fairs and exhibitions as well as employing foreign aid to enhance exports. It also includes offering assistance to small and medium companies to find their way to the world markets as well as supporting the service sectors focusing on tourism, contracting and financial services as well as promoting their activities on the Arab and African markets in particular," he stressed.

Referring to the steps adopted to help Egyptian products to have access to foreign markets, Ghali pointed out that they differed according to the nature of each market.

He divided them into two stages, the first to have access to US and European markets through establishing strong links with the purchasing representatives of big store chains and employing specialized marketing firms there. It also includes setting up Egyptian trade centers in certain locations there and inviting Egyptian businessmen to establish companies to work on promoting products at these centers.

The second stage, according to Ghali, includes Africa, the nature of whose markets impose certain techniques with regard to dealing with them such as the domination of foreign brokers of their foreign trade through unofficial channels, liquidity shortage and lacking of banking infrastructure.

In order to solve these problems, the Ministry had drawn a comprehensive plan which included making the best use of the brokers already playing in the scene, he said.

The plan is based on organizing exhibitions, fairs and permanent trade centers as well as stores for the Egyptian products at the major harbors, such as Djibouti for the Horn of Africa and Lagos for West Africa. Using the branches of el-Nasr Export and Import Company in the African countries would also be essential part of the plan, Ghali stressed.

Previous Stories:
  First stage investments Iin pertrochemicals amounts to $ 1.3 billion   (5/22/2001)
  Mubarak inaugurates COMESA Summit   (5/22/2001)
  Cairo summit set to boost inter-COMESA Trade   (5/21/2001)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search