CAIRO: Egypt is setting up a sovereign wealth fund with a capital of 200 billion Egyptian pounds ($11 billion), the state news agency said on Tuesday.
Former Public Enterprise Minister Khaled Badawi said in March that Egypt was discussing setting up a sovereign wealth fund to manage state companies it plans to list on the stock exchange.
The agency, MENA, did not specifically mention the privatization program, but said: “The fund aims to contribute to sustainable economic development through management of its funds and assets.”
The fund will be eligible to participate in all economic and investment activities, including setting up companies, investing in financial instruments, and other debt instruments in Egypt and abroad, the statement said.
The law, passed by parliament on Monday, approved a 5 billion Egyptian pound start-up capital for the fund called “Egypt Fund,” with 1 billion pounds to be transferred immediately from the treasury, MENA said.
Al-Borsa, a local financial newspaper, quoted Amr El-Gohary, a member of the parliament’s economic committee, as saying that the balance from the start-up capital will be paid over three years as part of the government investment plans.
MENA said the law allowed the president to transfer ownership of any unutilized state assets to the fund or any of its subsidiaries.
It gave no details of when it the fund was envisaged to reach 200 billion Egyptian pounds.
Egypt’s parliament last year passed a long-delayed investment law to streamline doing business in Egypt and to create incentives it hopes will bring back investors’ dollars after years of turmoil.
Egypt floated its pound currency in November 2016 under a three-year $12 billion IMF program tied to ambitious economic reforms, part of a bid to restore capital flows that dried up after its 2011 uprising drove away investors and tourists.
Egypt’s parliament passes $11 billion sovereign wealth fund
Egypt’s parliament passes $11 billion sovereign wealth fund
- The fund will be eligible to participate in all economic and investment activities, including setting up companies and investing in financial instruments
- Egypt floated its pound currency in November 2016 under a three-year $12 billion IMF program tied to ambitious economic reforms
First EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials reflects shared policy commitment
RIYADH: The EU–Saudi Arabia Business and Investment Dialogue on Advancing Critical Raw Materials Value Chains, held in Riyadh as part of the Future Minerals Forum, brought together senior policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to advance strategic cooperation across critical raw materials value chains.
Organized under a Team Europe approach by the EU–GCC Cooperation on Green Transition Project, in coordination with the EU Delegation to Saudi Arabia, the European Chamber of Commerce in the Kingdom and in close cooperation with FMF, the dialogue provided a high-level platform to explore European actions under the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU alongside the Kingdom’s aspirations for minerals, industrial, and investment priorities.
This is in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and broader regional ambitions across the GCC, MENA, and Africa.
ResourceEU is the EU’s new strategic action plan, launched in late 2025, to secure a reliable supply of critical raw materials like lithium, rare earths, and cobalt, reducing dependency on single suppliers, such as China, by boosting domestic extraction, processing, recycling, stockpiling, and strategic partnerships with resource-rich nations.
The first ever EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials was opened by the bloc’s Ambassador to the Kingdom, Christophe Farnaud, together with Saudi Deputy Minister for Mining Development Turki Al-Babtain, turning policy alignment into concrete cooperation.
Farnaud underlined the central role of international cooperation in the implementation of the EU’s critical raw materials policy framework.
“As the European Union advances the implementation of its Critical Raw Materials policy, international cooperation is indispensable to building secure, diversified, and sustainable value chains. Saudi Arabia is a key partner in this effort. This dialogue reflects our shared commitment to translate policy alignment into concrete business and investment cooperation that supports the green and digital transitions,” said the ambassador.
Discussions focused on strengthening resilient, diversified, and responsible CRM supply chains that are essential to the green and digital transitions.
Participants explored concrete opportunities for EU–Saudi cooperation across the full value chain, including exploration, mining, and processing and refining, as well as recycling, downstream manufacturing, and the mobilization of private investment and sustainable finance, underpinned by high environmental, social, and governance standards.
From the Saudi side, the dialogue was framed as a key contribution to the Kingdom’s industrial transformation and long-term economic diversification agenda under Vision 2030, with a strong focus on responsible resource development and global market integration.
“Developing globally competitive mineral hubs and sustainable value chains is a central pillar of Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s industrial transformation. Our engagement with the European Union through this dialogue to strengthen upstream and downstream integration, attract high-quality investment, and advance responsible mining and processing. Enhanced cooperation with the EU, capitalizing on the demand dynamics of the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, will be key to delivering long-term value for both sides,” said Al-Babtain.
Valere Moutarlier, deputy director-general for European industry decarbonization, and directorate-general for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs at European Commission, said the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU provided a clear framework to strengthen Europe’s resilience while deepening its cooperation with international partners.
“Cooperation with Saudi Arabia is essential to advancing secure, sustainable, and diversified critical raw materials value chains. Dialogues such as this play a key role in translating policy ambitions into concrete industrial and investment cooperation,” she added.
