Egypt signs the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises

On 11 July 2007, Egypt became the first Arab and first African country to sign the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises. This marks a new stage in Egypt's drive to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI). A series of policy reforms have helped to underpin a fifteen-fold increase in Egypt’s FDI between 2001 and 2006. FDI reached a record USD 9 billion in the first three quarters of its 2007 fiscal year. This compares with USD 6.1 billion for the whole of 2006.

A signing ceremony at OECD headquarters was followed by a news conference with Egypt's Minister of Investment, Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, and OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría. The news conference also presented the findings of the OECD Investment Policy Review of Egypt.

Since 2006, Egypt has chaired a joint Middle-East and North Africa-OECD Investment Programme and, in November 2007, hosted the second MENA-OECD Ministerial Meeting, “Making reforms succeed: moving forward with the investment policy agenda”, with the participation of the Prime Minister of Egypt, Ahmed Nazif and the OECD Secretary-General, Angel Gurría.

For further information, see:

• Second MENA-OECD Ministerial Meeting on “Making reforms succeed: moving forward with the investment policy agenda”, Cairo, Egypt, 27-28 November 2007 
• OECD Investment Policy Reviews: Egypt, 25 September 2007 
• Video of the signing ceremony, 11 July 2007
• OECD news release: Egypt should keep up pace of reform to attract more investment, says OECD, 11 July 2007

  OECD news release: Egypt to sign the OECD’s International Investment Declaration, Paris, 11 July 2007, 5 July 2007
• OECD Declaration and Decisions on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises
• The Policy Framework for Investment
• OECD Middle East North Africa Investment Programme www.oecd.org/mena