Despite the considerable distance between Uzbekistan and Egypt are connected by historical and cultural closeness, traditional friendship and close cooperation. Due to the geographical location, the countries are transport and logistics hubs in Central Asia and the Middle East, respectively.

On February 20-21, the first visit of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Egypt took place, the significance of which, according to experts, lies in the further development of long-standing relations between Uzbekistan and Egypt at a new level, based on modern requirements.

During the talks between the Presidents of Uzbekistan and Egypt, the main issues under discussion were the development of trade and investment cooperation, the wide and effective use of existing opportunities in this area.

Both sides are increasing cooperation in all areas of interaction to further increase the level of trade, economic and investment ties between the countries. This is evidenced by the results of the ongoing meetings of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, business forums with the participation of representatives of the business circles of Uzbekistan and Egypt, the results of bilateral visits of business delegations, indicators of mutual trade.

Over the past five years, the trade turnover between Uzbekistan and Egypt has grown 3.2 times – from $10 million in 2017 to $30.5 million in 2022. At the same time, Uzbekistan’s exports to Egypt over the same period increased 16 times: from $1.4 million to $23.2 million.

The business forum held on the eve of the state visit of the President of Uzbekistan to Egypt was also fruitful, as a result of which more than 20 documents worth more than $1.6 billion were signed, which indicates the existence of huge opportunities and resources in trade and economic cooperation between Uzbekistan and Egypt. The event contributed to the formation of Egyptian businessmen’s interest in Uzbekistan goods of the non-commodity sector, ensured the establishment of direct contacts between domestic producers and potential Egyptian buyers and investors, and the exchange of information on quality and price indicators of products.

Nevertheless, according to economists, the current scale of bilateral trade and economic relations does not meet the potential of the two countries, which have sufficient opportunities and resources to increase the volume of trade up to ten times.

There are many stimulating factors to raise the level of economic cooperation between states. For example, a favorable environment has been created in Uzbekistan for the development of investment cooperation, the possibilities of which are already being used by Egyptian companies. About 30 joint ventures with Egyptian capital operate in the country. Among them is the Solyphar company, which is participating in the construction of a pharmaceutical production facility in the Bostanlyk-Pharm free economic zone in Tashkent region for about $20 million. The issue of organizing the production of drugs against hepatitis C in Kashkadarya region for $1.4 million is being worked out with One World Pharma. In cooperation with Kapo Agri, a project to create a fish farm in Namangan region is being implemented with an investment of $1 million. Interest in establishing cooperation with Uzbek partners is expressed by Orascom Telecommunications and Construction, Al Madani Construction, One World, Toshiba-Al-Arabi, Al Suwaidi Electrics and other large Egyptian companies.

Dynamism in the development of Uzbekistan – Egypt trade and economic relations will be given by the intensification of long-term cooperation in industrial cooperation.

Egypt is one of the largest economies in Africa and the Middle East. At the end of 2022, the country ranked 37th in the world and 3rd in the African continent in terms of GDP ($404 billion). GDP per capita – $3.7 thousand. The growth of the economy in the past year amounted to 3.3 percent.

Agreements have been reached between Uzbekistan and Egypt on creating favorable conditions for attracting mutual investments. To this end, considering the complementarity of the two countries economies, five specific areas of cooperation in the gas chemical, textile, electrical, jewelry and pharmaceutical industries have been defined. According to these documents, it is planned to create Uzbekistan textile companies in the Egyptian Port Said for subsequent export to African and Middle Eastern countries.

In a short time, Tashkent and Cairo plan to develop and adopt a roadmap to deepen bilateral cooperation in industrial cooperation. The implementation of such projects will become a new growth point for production, cooperation, trade and economic ties between Uzbekistan and Egypt.

During the visit of the President of Uzbekistan to Egypt, agreements were reached on the joint implementation of green energy projects, the development of optimal transport routes connecting the two regions, and the mutual use of existing free economic zones.

Uzbekistan can export to Egypt goods of electrotechnical, machine-building, metallurgical, chemical and petrochemical, light and food industries, agricultural and other products that are in demand on its market. The Arab Republic can supply medicines, medical equipment, furniture, petrochemical products, porcelain, leather, plastic and other products to Uzbekistan.

In the medium term, the most important driver for the development of trade and investment between Tashkent and Cairo should be the creation of sustainable transport and logistics corridors.

To further encourage trade and investment ties between Uzbekistan and Egypt, the parties also agreed on several practical measures to develop and sign a Preferential Trade Agreement, create a joint Business Council, and hold its first meeting in the second half of 2023 in Tashkent.

Interregional cooperation is of great importance in enhancing trade and economic ties. In this direction, there are already agreements on establishing direct cooperation between Namangan region and the province of Alexandria.

It should be emphasized that Uzbekistan, due to its geostrategic position, has the opportunity to become a bridge in the export of Egyptian products to the markets of Central Asia, and Egypt, with the presence of the Suez Canal, has favorable conditions for the entry of Uzbek goods to the markets of the Middle East and East Africa.

In this regard, in the medium term, one of the solutions to the problems of diversifying export routes is the development and creation of sustainable transport and logistics corridors, which can become the most important drivers for the development of trade, economic and investment ties between Tashkent and Cairo.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt demonstrated the dynamic development of cooperation and the established high level of trust between the countries. The achievement of a solid package of agreements has opened up great prospects for enhancing cooperative partnerships, attracting large Egyptian investors to new economic projects in Uzbekistan, and developing optimal transport routes connecting the two countries.

Egypt has an important place in the architecture of foreign economic relations of Uzbekistan in the Middle East and Africa, and the summit helped not only strengthen mutual understanding, but also outline further ways to develop cooperation, new mechanisms and tools to enhance and strengthen collaboration between Uzbekistan and Egypt.

Alisher Qodirov,

ISRS Department Head under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan