Day 1 — Saturday, May 20, 2006
For the past two days, I have been experiencing ‘pre-Forum’ Sharm El-Sheikh as final preparations were being made to welcome more than 1,200 dignitaries and opinion leaders to our shores for the World Economic Forum on the Middle East. There is no doubt that the pressure is on: The eyes of the world are focused on Egypt for the next three days, but we are definitely up to the challenge. I’m extremely proud and excited to finally see the fruits of all the hard work we have put in over the past nine months.
The achievements we have made during that short time-span are immense. We worked around the clock to ensure that things come together at the right time and place. This has involved cooperation with various segments of the Egyptian government and coordinating between our Ministries, Forum organizers and entities such as the airport, the media and our State Security apparatus.
Things are on the right track: Egypt is open for business, and we want to let the rest of the world know about it.
I am confident that what we have on offer in the coming days will be exceptional, whether we are talking about the facilities, the city, the environment or the Egyptian economic success story itself.
We have a great list of participants who will be engaged in sessions that are very relevant to our current circumstances in the Middle East. It is an agenda that adequately reflects issues that are of real concern to the region during this time of turmoil and transition. Issues affecting youth, including job creation and education, go to the heart of our challenges at a time when governments are debating the question: What is our promise to future generations — and how do we meet that promise?
I plan to focus in the coming days on inter-Arab trade and competitiveness. I’m particularly interested in Arab institutions at present because I want to make sure that we can help create the environment private companies need in order to continue what they have started: moving from being regional players to fully global ones. I truly believe that the strength of the Middle East in the decades ahead depends on how our companies perform in the next few years. And by "our," I mean not just Egyptian, but also Saudi, Gulf and Jordanian businesses.
I want to improve the odds for each and every company that is now a regional player. Expansion is crucial, because our strength as a region — and our economic strength as Egypt — is only as good as the strength of our companies. The issue now is how can we get five, ten — maybe even fifteen — regional companies into the Fortune Global 500 within the next five years.
Coming together for an event like the World Economic Forum on the Middle East demonstrates the extent to which government and business are committed to joining forces and engaging in a joint dialogue to solve our most pressing issues, which I believe can never be resolved by governments alone.
This is a critical time of transition not only for Egypt, but for the region, and we must take this opportunity to discuss where we are going. We are at a crossroads, and the future of the next generation is at stake. What kind of a region are we leaving behind for our youth, and what do they expect from us?
In Egypt, 640,000 students graduate from universities each year in search of a better life. Their future will be decided by what we, as a government, do today — but we can’t work in isolation. That’s why the Forum is such a great venue. Bringing together all the stakeholders allows us to chart a vision of where we want to take future generations.
Rachid Mohamed Rachid
Minister of Trade and Industry
Arab Republic of Egypt
Blog for the World Economic Forum on the Middle East
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