By Dr.khadiga faisal
Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Nevine Gamea, in the southern Governorate of Qena, and Qena Governor Ashraf El-Daoudi met on Saturday a host of investors to discuss the problems they are facing and find solutions to these problems.
The meeting followed a tour the minister made of industrial zones in Qift and Nagaa Hamadi in Qena.
Minister Gamea said she is always keen on meeting investors to discuss their problems and work to find solutions to these problems. This, she added, can contribute to the growth of the national industrial sector.
The minister added that she is also always keen on listening to suggestions from the members of the business community and manufacturers wherever she goes.
She noted that her discussions with businessmen from the aforementioned two zones were focused on the problems businessmen face as they seek to license their businesses.
She added that the businessmen also raised the issue of the need for plots of land where they can expand their businesses.
She said the Ministry of Trade and Industry is eager to use all plots of land available in the two industrial zones in Qift and Nagaa Hamadi in the best manner and in ways that serve the interests of the manufacturers operating in them.
“We also want to give the opportunity for new investors to start their businesses in the two zones,” Minister Gamea said.
Attending the meeting between the minister and the governor and businessmen from the two zones was a host of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate who also put forward some proposals for easing the licensing process for industrial projects in the two zones.
The lawmakers also suggested some incentives to attract more industrial investments to the two zones.
The attraction of investments to the zones and to Qena Governorate, in general, the lawmakers said, would contribute to creating employment opportunities for youth in the southern governorate.
Discussions during the meeting also tackled some of the laws regulating industrial activities and investments and the role they play in economic development.
Minister Gamea said the government wants to integrate all industrial institutions, including informal ones, into the formal economy.
It wants to do this, she added, in order to help these institutions benefit from financing, training and commercial promotion initiatives launched by the state nationwide.
“We also want to help these informal economic activities participate in exhibitions organized at home and abroad,” Minister Gamea said.
