Egypt Chamber of Commerce, Egypt Chamber of Industry, Egypt Chamber of Industries

Official Name

Arab Republic of Egypt

Capital

Cairo

Flag

Three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the national emblem (a gold Eagle of Saladin facing the hoist side with a shield superimposed on its chest above a scroll bearing the name of the country in Arabic) centered in the white band.

Currency

Egyptian Pound
(1 LE = 100 Piasters Approx. US$1=LE 5.34)

Population

80,335,036 (July 2007 est.)

Main Languages

Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes

Total GDP

$85.37 billion (2006 est.)

India-Egypt Bilateral Relations

India and Egypt enjoyed an exceptionally close relationship during the Nehru-Nasser era, and signed a Friendship Treaty in 1955. The birth of Non-Aligned Movement was, inter alia, the outcome of this relationship. President Mubarak visited India in 1982, and again in 1983 to attend the NAM Summit. In 1995, the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding was conferred on President Mubarak. Since the 1980s, there have been three Prime Ministerial visits from India to Egypt: Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi visited Egypt in 1985; Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao in 1995; and, Prime Minister Gujral in 1997. Prime Minister Deve Gowda met President Mubarak twice - in Harare in November 1996 on the margins of the G-15 Summit, and in January 1997 on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos.

The Egyptian Foreign Minister, Mr. Aboul Gheit visited India on 15-16 December 2006. The 5th session of the Joint Commission, co-chaired by the Minister of External Affairs of India and the Egyptian Foreign Minister, was held during the visit on 16 December 2006. Mr. Aboul Gheit had extensive discussions with the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee and called on the Defence Minister, Mr. A. K. Antony. Five agreements were signed including the Partnership Agreement; an MoU on bilateral air services; the Work Plan on agricultural cooperation; the Executive Programme on cultural exchanges; and, the Executive Programme on cooperation in the field of science and technology.

Bilateral Economic and Commercial Relation

Egypt has traditionally been one of India's most important trading partners in the African continent. The India-Egypt Bilateral Trade Agreement has been in operation since March 1978 and is based on the Most Favoured Nation clause. Bilateral trade figures are given below:

(million $)

Item Year	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan-Sept2007	Notes
Egyptian Expor	202.4	393.3	678.8	999.1	1394.35	1276.151747	Including tscrude oil and its products
Egyptian Imports	291.6	320	407	533.2	731.16	657.2001973
Trade Volume	494	713.3	1085.8	1532.3	2125.51	1933.351944
Trade Balance	-89.2	73.3	271.8	465.9	663.19	618.95155

Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India

For the calendar year 2006, India emerged as Egypt's third largest trading partner behind the US and Italy and as the largest importer of Egyptian cotton According to Egyptian trade figures, India's exports to Egypt amounted to USD 731.16 million and India's imports from Egypt stood at USD 1394.30 million during this period, 95% of which was oil and gas; raw cotton, rock phosphate, coking coal and marble are the other items. Major Indian export items include engineering goods such as machinery, instruments, diesel engines, pumps & vehicles; boneless bovine frozen meat (suspended in 2003, but recently resumed); sesame seeds; cotton, jute yarn and other textile fibres; plastic & rubber; chemicals and pharmaceuticals (vaccines, blood & blood derivatives); tea; tobacco; paper; and cereals (mainly wheat and rice). India has emerged as the largest destination for Egyptian exports.

Indian Projects in Egypt

According to the Egyptian sources, India is the 12th largest foreign investor in Egypt with a total investment of approximately US$ 800 million in close to 40 projects. Alexandria Carbon Black (ACB) set up by Grasim India Limited with TRENCO and ATC as Egyptian partners has been the leading successful joint venture between Indian and Egyptian companies. Established in 1994 with a capacity of 20,000 tonnes, its capacity has since been increased to 180,000 tonnes. It exports 93% of its product generating foreign exchange revenue or savings of close to US$ 100 million for Egypt annually. A new acrylic fibre plant - Alexandria Fibre Co. which started production in February 2006 - has been set up by the Aditya Birla Group with an initial investment of $ 60 million and with a capacity of 18,000 tonnes per year, planned to increase to 36,000 tonnes per year in its second phase. Other recent projects include the JV between Asian Paints and SCIB Chemical, (Orascom Group); in October 2004, HDFC facilitated the setting up of EHDC (Egyptian Housing Development Company) by acquiring 10% equity and providing technical as well as management assistance; IFFCO has signed an agreement with Al Nasr minning co. to establish a phosphoric acid plant in Upper Egypt entailing an investment of over $ 350 million; the Oberoi group has been managing a hotel and Nile cruises; ESSEL of India has set up a JV for manufacturing laminated tooth paste tubes for Proctor and Gamble in Egypt; Dabur India Ltd. has established a 100% owned facility for the production of its cosmetics line; Niletex, a 100% Indian company manufactures PVC water-storage tanks; M/s. Auto Tech Engineering, another 100% Indian company, manufactures auto valves; Kirloskar Brothers assemble diesel engines and irrigation pump sets in Egypt; Ranbaxy has an Egyptian subsidiary for manufacturing pharmaceutical formulations; Ashok Leyland, in collaboration with the Engineering Automotive Manufacturing Company of Egypt are assembling and selling mini buses in Egypt. Mahindra & Mahindra was reported to have entered into an agreement with Bavarian Auto Trading Company for setting up a CKD assembly unit for utility vehicles and pick-ups in Egypt; TATA Motors have an office in Egypt and, recently, they launched their entire range of vehicles in the Egyptian market; Marico, an Indian consumer goods company acquired 'Fiancee', a hair care brand from Egypt's Ready Group; SBI has a Representative Office in Cairo. In March 2007, the Sanmar Group completed acquisition of a unit of Trust Chemicals of Egypt. In June 2007, South Asian Petrochem Ltd. entered into a shareholders agreement with Echem of Egypt to set up a US$ 250 million PET resin plant in Egypt.

Oil and Gas

Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Mr. Murli Deora led a high-level delegation to Egypt on 22-25 April 2007. Mr. Deora called on President Mubarak (to whom he handed over a personal letter from PM) and the Egyptian Minister for Trade and Industry. He also held discussions on bilateral cooperation with Minister for Petroleum of Egypt, Eng. Sameh Fahmy. Separate discussions were also held between the PSUs and their Egyptian counterpart organizations. Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has equity and management stake in two gas distribution ventures in Fayoum and Cairo as well as in Natgas. In April 2007, OVL and its partner IPR Red Sea Inc. announced a significant oil field discovery in the North Ramadan Concession in the Gulf of Suez, the contract for which dates to August 2005. OVL is negotiating a 33% stake in an offshore block operated by Shell in the north-east Mediterranean. GSPC of Gujarat reported in December 2006 that it had bagged two exploration blocks in Egypt in partnership with a Canadian company.

Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme

Over 170 Egyptian candidates have been to India under the ITEC programme since 1986. 13 Egyptian diplomats have also attended courses conducted by the Foreign Service Institute of India.

Indian Community/Tourists

At present, the Indian community in Egypt comprises about 500 families, most of whom are concentrated in Cairo. There are small numbers of families in Alexandria and Port Said. The Indian community is a cohesive group, consisting largely of professionals. There is close interaction between the Indian community and the Embassy, at the professional as well as social levels.

The head of the Egyptian Tourism Authority, Mr. Amr El-Ezaby visited Delhi on 18-20 April 2007. The third meeting of the JWG on Tourism Cooperation was held in Delhi on 19 April 2007. About 61,000 Indian tourists visited Egypt in 2006, registering an increase by 17% over the 2005 figure. For Indian visitors to Egypt, it is advisable to have a pre-arrival visa. (Requirements for foreigners visiting or staying in Egypt may be seen at the Egyptian Foreign Ministry website.) Egypt Air operates three flights a week between Cairo and Mumbai. As of now, Indian carriers are not operating between destinations in Egypt and India.

Tourist Attractions in Egypt

There are many tourist attractions in Egypt that leave the visitors completely amazed. The most fantastic are the Pyramids of Egypt that make out as the picturesque and breathtaking site. There is so much to see in Egyptian museums, historical sites, architecture, landscapes, deserts-the charm of Egypt seems eternally incessant.

Cairo, considered as the 'mother of the world' is the most visited city. The beauty and significance of tourist attractions in Cairo can be judged by the fact that it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The charisma of pyramids and Nile cruises will simply leave you speechless. Another tourist attraction in Egypt is Alexandria, a historic site reminding of one of the great warriors Alexander the Great and the Romans and beautiful Cleopatra. Luxor a leading tourist destination of Egypt is a living and open museum. Other famous tourist attractions in Egypt are Aswan, Sharm El Sheikh, Marsa Alam, Hurghada, Pyramids of Giza, Lake Nasser, Red Sea and many more.

List of airports in Egypt

Embaba Airport
Abu El Ghradieq Airport
Hurghada Airport
Abu Rudeis Airport
Khalda Mleiha Airport
Abu Simbel Airport
Luxor International Airport
El Nouzha Airport
Marsa Alam Airport
Mersa Matruh Airport
Borg El Arab Airport
New Valley Airport
Assiut Airport
Port Said Airport
Daraw Airport
Ras Gharib Airport
Cairo International Airport
Ras Shukeir Airport
Dakhla Oasis Airport
Sharq El Oweinat Airport
El Arish International Airport
Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport
El Gora Airport
St. Catherine International Airport
El Kharga Airport
Taba International Airport
El Tor Airport
Cairo West Airport

Consulate General in Mumbai

Counsul General H.E. Mrs. Nabila Salama

101, Benhur Apartments,
32, Narayan Dabholkar Road, Mumbai 400006.

Embassy in New Delhi

H.E. Dr. Mohamed Higazy - Ambassador
1/50 M, Niti Marg, Chanakyapuri.
New Delhi - 110021

Chambers of Commerce in their Country

Federation of Egyptian Industries

1195 Cornish El Nile - Ramla Boulak
Cairo
Egypt
Telephone: +20 5796592

Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce

4, Midan El Falaki Street
Cairo, Egypt
Phone: (202) 3551164
Fax: (202) 3557940
Chairman: Mahmoud El-Araby

Visa Procedure

Valid Passport
One Photograph
Introductory letter
Person applying for visa from outside Delhi may submit their papers through a representative.
Visa Application Form duly completed and signed.

Main Imports

Machinery & equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, wood products, fuel

Main Exports

Crude oil and petroleum,products,cotton,textiles,metal products,chemicals

Egypt