B2B Crucial for Egypt’s Post-Uprising Growth

Egypt is climbing out of economic troubles that have plagued the nation since the 2011 uprising, and according to reports, government procurement and business-to-business ventures are playing a crucial role in this recovery.

Reports revealed Thursday (Feb. 26) that Egypt saw a 4.6 percent expansion in tis economy in the first six months of the fiscal year, a rate not seen since before the uprising. The nation’s Minister of Planning Ashraf El-Arabi attributed this growth to a reaction to last year’s slowdown amid political unrest.

While tourism and manufacturing were both cited by the central bank’s report as having seen significant growth, government procurement planning is also strengthening the economy.

According to reports, the nation will hold an international conference in mid-March to seek international investment. Federal officials will reveal 33 projects to investors, five of which include business-to-business plans, according to El-Arabi, who added that the conference is part of Egypt’s goal to raise $60 billion in foreign direct investment over the next four years.

The Minister also noted that Egypt expects to realize a more than 4 percent economic expansion for the full year, up from 2.2 percent.

Reports of Egypt’s economic growth and plans to accelerate it follow earlier findings that e-commerce throughout the continent of Africa is booming, even in the less-developed nations. Startups in the space, reports say, depend on customer trust to grow their e-commerce ventures, leading to stronger online shopping rates and interest within the mobile payments world to innovate in the region.