Piyush Goyal to visit Egypt with big business delegation; India eyes trade, investment partnerships

New Delhi: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will visit Egypt next week leading a big business delegation eyeing to explore partnerships and collaboration across diverse sectors as India eyes to consolidate its strategic partnerships in West Asia beyond the Gulf region.

Egypt, a key pillar of the Arab World and pole of stability in the region, is seeking collaboration and Indian investments and expertise in Startups, Fintech, Pharmaceuticals, Automobile components besides infrastructure.

Goyal will hold slew of meetings including with his Egyptian counterparts and other Ministers and is also expected to call the PM, ET has learnt. An India-Egypt Startup Summit is being planned on the occasion.


Goyal's Cairo visit will be followed by the visit of the Egyptian Defence Minister to Delhi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's Cairo trip over the next few months to bring robustness to strategic partnership. There are plans by PM Narendra Modi to visit Cairo next year on the occasion of 80 years of creation of diplomatic ties. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has visited India five times since 2015.

Egypt with its several FTAs across Africa, Gulf and Southern Europe, is positioning itself as India's gateway and connectivity route through ports in Western Saudi Arabia bypassing Hormuz Strait and Bab-el-Mandeb Strait. Cairo besides Oman has been keen to be part of IMEC connecting India to Europe via Gulf and Mediterranean.

More than 700 Indian companies are registered in Egypt, of which around 70 are active in various sectors, with combined investments exceeding $5.5 billion. Egypt is keen to emerge as India's gateway to markets in Africa, the Arab world and Europe, given its several free trade agreements across the continents.