Nazif opens new Investment Services Complex

"Egypt enjoys the highest level of stability in the region," said Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif yesterday. He also noted that the political freedoms and reforms the country is implementing are not found on the regional level, being based on "self- solutions and not foreign pressures."

Opening the Investment Services Complex at the headquarters of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), the Prime Minister stressed President Mubarak's support for the "life and death" investment and employment issues.

Nazif said that the past ten months had witnessed a remarkable change thanks to President Mubarak's directives.

The newly-inaugurated Complex houses all the official authorities and agencies dealing with investors into one building.

In a related statement, Nazif said that the National Democratic Party, in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice, had prepared a draft bill for economic courts to help settle commercial and investment disputes.

He noted that the coming economic period would witness great developments in establishing the investment services complexes nationwide to make things easy for investors.

Commenting on the utilization of foreign expertise in promoting investments in Egypt, Nazif said that this does not mean distrust in the Egyptian expertise.

GAFI Chairman, Ziad Bahaa Eddin, said that it had adopted new thinking, turning the Authority's role from control to promotion.

He noted that 1673 companies had been founded during the first quarter of the year compared to only 896 during the corresponding period last year, marking a rise of 87 percent.