Egypt Create Trade Window for BRICS into North Africa, Middle East, Says Minister Seleh

After joining BRICS on January 1, 2024, Egypt will create a trade “window into the Middle East and North Africa,” according to Minister of Industry and Trade Ahmed Samir Saleh of Egypt.

Egypt serves as BRICS’s gateway to the Middle East and North Africa, and because of its geographic location, it also has the chance to play a bigger role in the sale of BRICS member states’ goods to the African continent.

According to Saleh, the accession of Egypt to the group and the decision of the BRICS New Development Bank in Dec. 2021 to admit Egypt into the ranks of its members confirm “the strength of economic and political ties” between Cairo and the group’s member’s states.

The minister of trade for Egypt observed that trade between Egypt and the bloc had increased, with a total value of about 31.2 billion dollars in 2022 compared to 25.5 billion dollars in 2021.

“We believe that joining the group is an opportunity to strengthen constructive cooperation with member states,’’ Saleh said in his interview with Sputnik.

Invitations to join the bloc were extended to Egypt, along with Argentina, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, during the 15th high-level BRICS summit in Johannesburg in August 2023.

As of January 1, 2024, all of them were members of the group; however, Argentina withdrew its intention to join under the leadership of Javier Milei, the group’s new president. (NAN)

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