By Sarah Saad
Egypt’s Minister of State for Military Production Mohamed Salah El-Din Moustafa met on Wednesday with Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan el-Khatib to discuss aspects of joint co-operation between the two ministries.
During the meeting, Minister Moustafa expressed his aspiration to enhance fruitful co-operation between the two ministries during the coming period and open new horizons for cooperation in various fields.
Minister Moustafa has reiterated that the ministry’s primary mission is to fulfill the needs of the armed forces and the police from various weapons, ammunition and equipment.
He pointed out that the surplus production capacities of the ministry’s subsidiaries are utilised to manufacture civilian products to meet the needs of citizens. He has noted that military production companies and units also participate in the implementation of many national projects across the country.
The military production minister reviewed the ministry’s organisational structure, pointing out that the ministry’s subsidiaries play a key role in boosting the national industry.
He has said the ministry has 16 industrial companies and four other firms operating in other sectors like information systems, construction, maintenance and research.
According to him, the Military Production Ministry also has a training sector, a medical center, and a facility for testing ranges for ammunition and weapons.
Minister Salah El-Din Moustafa also reviewed the technological, technical, and human capabilities of these companies, as well as the available resources and assets of lands, hangars, and giant workshops that can be tapped to attract local and foreign investors.
For his part, minister el-Khatib has reiterated Egypt’s desire to attract more investments, citing lots of opportunities and huge projects available in the Egyptian market in various sectors.
El-Khatib also praised the role of the Ministry of Military Production, which is the basic pillar of the military industrialization in Egypt and one of the most important industrial arms in the country.
He stressed the importance of taking advantage of excessive production capacities of the Military Production Ministry’s subsidiaries for the benefit of civilian production and exports.
“There will be Ffull coordination between the Ministries of Military Production and Investment to support Egypt’s economic and commercial capabilities by attracting more investments,” el-Khatib said.
The investment minister said he would invite local and foreign investors and businessmen to visit military production companies and units for exploration of business opportunities.
Moreover, the Ministry of Military Production is keen on implementing directives of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to increase public investments in a bid to deepen local manufacturing, said Mohamed Eid Bakr, official spokesman of the Ministry of State for Military Production.
Bakr has said the goal is to slash Egypt’s imports to save foreign currency through cooperation with the private sector to support its role in the national economic activity.
