Egyptian Government outlines reform agenda at Trowers & Hamlins hosted forum

Among the attendees at the forum, held in the City of London on September 29 2004, were two Egyptian Ministers (Industry & Foreign Trade and Investment) and Baroness Symons, British Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. The Egyptian Ambassador in London also attended, as did the British Ambassador in Cairo.

In his speech, Egyptian Minister of Investment, Dr Mahmoud Mohieldin, hailed the progress made by President Mubarak's Government in reforming the Egyptian economy and encouraging greater foreign investment. Significant steps had already been taken, he said, to reduce the tax burden on businesses by cutting customs duties.

Dr Mohieldin went on to stress that much more radical measures are in the pipeline. These, he said, will include substantial reductions in Egyptian corporation and income tax rates. He announced that one of Egypt's state banks will be privatised and suggested that a wide-ranging programme of privatisation will follow, assuming the initial privatisation proves successful. Dr Mohieldin also made a commitment to reduce the Red Tape burden on businesses operating in Egypt.

Baroness Symons, in her address, congratulated the Mubarak Government on its ongoing, ambitious programme of economic reform. The UK, she said, is now the top non-Arab investor in Egypt, with investments worth $18bn.

Sara Hinton, Partner, Trowers & Hamlins, in her keynote speech, said two major legal reforms must accompany the economic reforms to help UK investment in Egypt to grow. First, a fast-track investment court where disputes can be resolved more quickly and less expensively, and second, tighter drafting of Egyptian laws, so as to remove some of the uncertainties over the interpretation of legislation.

Nick Edmondes, Partner, Trowers & Hamlins, summing up the discussion, said: "We are delighted the Egyptian and UK Governments took this opportunity to put forward their commitment to the reform programme in Egypt and speak frankly and in detail about the next steps."

"The proposals came across as serious and rigorously planned. UK investors will welcome these initiatives, but would like to see the liberalisation process go hand-in-hand with reform to the processes of the legal system."