Egyptian Supreme Council for Textile Industries is work to establish a partnership with a major Chinese company to develop a project that aims to improve a free zone specialised in textile industries in Minya, said Mohamed Kassem, head of the Council.

Kassem stressed that the establishment of the company with the Chinese side will be done right after issuing the approval to establish the zone. The project aims to transform Minya in particular and Egypt in general as a regional hub for textile industries in the Middle East and Africa and meet the needs of the regions textile and textile industries.

Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr met with members of the council to discuss the possibility of involving the private sector in developing a freezone specialised in textile industries on an area of 306 feddans in Minya.

The ministry is coordinating with the governor of Minya to complete all the procedures of the project, which aims to transform Minya in particular and Egypt in general into a regional hub for the textile industries in the Middle East and Africa.

The minister stressed that the project is a first step towards repeating such an experiment in many governorates of Egypt.

The ministry will support this experience by providing part of the funding required through the international financial institutions, as well as the implementation of specialised training programmes in textile industries.

Egypt is also implementing an ambitious economic reform programme, which included liberalising the exchange rate and includes restructuring fuel subsidies and applying the value-added tax. The programme also includes ratifying a new Investment Law and an Industrial Licensing Law, all of which aim to accelerate economic growth to curb inflation and reduce unemployment.

The members of the Supreme Council for Textile Industries praised the measures taken by the ministry to improve the investment environment and expand the establishment of free and investment zones in the various governorates.

They also expressed their intention to expand in the governorates of Kafr Al-Sheikh, Beheira, and Sharqeya, according to the statement.

The meeting was attended by Mona Zobaa, the executive chairperson of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), and Fadel Marzouk, the chairperson of the Readymade Garments Export Council of Egypt.