Egypt set to double trade with India in three years, hopes to be a part of BRICS

President Mohamed Morsi says BRICs nations have a major role to play in the development of Egypt in a democratic set-up

Egypt is keen to be a part of the BRICS (Brazil, India, China, South Africa) bloc, according to the country's President, Mohamed Morsi.

BRICs nations have a major role to play in the development of Egypt in a democratic set-up, said Morsi. Egypt is looking forward to a time when it also becomes a part of BRICS, making it E-BRICS, he added.

He said trade between India and Egypt is set to double in the next few years. "Currently, the bilateral trade between both the countries is around $5 billion. We are looking to double this in the next few years," said Morsi, while addressing a FICCI summit here.

Inviting Indian companies to invest in Egypt, he added, "One of our main focuses is on attracting foreign direct investment (FDI). Both countries can cooperate in areas like trade, energy, technology and space science."

According to Morsi, FDI will create additional job opportunities and effect technology transfer in Egypt.

"The government endeavours to improve the infrastructure, to remove the obstacles to foreign investments and provide necessary support in that regard, and to provide appropriate mechanisms to resolve investment disputes."

He said Egypt is also keen that Indian firms set up free economic zones in Egypt to trade with third world countries.

"I urge Indian corporates to look at Egypt as a manufacturing base to export to other countries," said Commerce Minister Anand Sharma.

Morsi took charge of Egypt after the Arab Spring revolution in 2011, which removed 30 years of Hosni Mubarak's rule. Despite the tough challenges that the Egyptian economy has been encountering since the beginning of the transitional period, it has succeeded in achieving a GDP positive growth rate, said Morsi. He attributed this to the sound constituents of economy and development of different economic sectors, the labour force, and the country's geographical location.

Meanwhile, six memoranda of understanding (MoU) were signed during the function, including the one on setting up a India Egypt Business Council.

Yesterday, both India and Egypt signed seven agreements. The bilateral MoUs covered sectors such as electronics, cluster development and co-operation between ICT companies.