Malaysia and Egypt can be Trade Gateways

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | January 07, 2009 by D-8 Secretariat

Muhyiddin and Rachid shaking hands after their meeting at Muhyiddin’s office in Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia and Egypt should encourage their business sectors to make use of the nations’ role as trade gateways to the Asian and Arab-African regions. International Trade and Industry Minister of Malaysia, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said there were many opportunities that could be tapped from Malaysia-Egypt ties.

“Egypt is not only a gateway to the African continent. It’s also linked to the rest of Europe.

“As Malaysia is the trade and investment gateway for Asean, we can increase our joint co-operation and enhance it.

“We have agreed to form the Malaysia-Egypt trade and investment committee as soon as possible to plan the bilateral agendas of interest to both countries,” he told reporters after receiving a courtesy call from Egypt Trade and Industry Minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid at his office here yesterday.

Muhyiddin admitted that while the trade volume had increased in the past few years, it was still small.

Rachid agreed, saying Egypt is opening its infrastructure development projects in the form of public-private enterprise arrangements.

“This will be a big opportunities for Malaysian companies to participate in the development of roads, airports, ports and water supply projects,” he added. Matrade chief executive officer Datuk Norharuddin Nordin said the Egyptian middle class market was large.

D-8 Economist, Esen Gonen, said that Egypt jumped 11 places in aggregate rankings on the ease of doing business and scored the world’s 10th business reformer in 2008, according to the World Bank’s “Doing Business 2009 Report.”

“Egypt has implemented one-stop shops for import/export and business start-up, undertaken sweeping tax reforms, continually improved its credit information systems, and modified listing rules of the Egyptian Stock Exchange [further protecting minority shareholders],” she explained the report.

The report also cited that Egypt made starting a business easier by reducing the paid-in minimum capital requirement by more than 80 percent, abolishing bar association fees, and automating tax registration.

D-8 Secretary General, Dr. Dipo Alam is pleased with this WB’s report, and believes that D-8 economic cooperation has greater prospect to develop within the framework of D-8 cooperation.

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