By Shailesh Yadav

Cairo [Egypt], November 15 (ANI): Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday called for a more ambitious economic partnership between India and Egypt, saying bilateral trade of USD 6.5 billion falls well short of the two countries' potential.

Speaking at the opening of the 7th India-Egypt Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting, Goyal noted the progress made since the last JTC in New Delhi in September 2024, and urged both teams to identify new avenues of cooperation.

Referring to current global disruptions, Goyal said the turmoil at the Strait of Hormuz and around the Suez Canal had shown 'how fragile our lifelines are.' He thanked Egypt, which guards a key artery of world trade, for standing by India 'as a trusted and reliable partner through every storm.'

Goyal said he was accompanied by a large, geographically balanced Indian business delegation spanning artificial intelligence, aerospace, defence, agri-food, clean energy and fertilisers, including women founders from the energy and venture capital sectors.

He welcomed Egypt's offer of an India-specific zone in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, saying he would ask colleagues to examine the sites on offer. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's approach of replacing 'red tape with a red carpet' matched Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly's vision of being a partner to investors rather than merely a regulator.

Goyal urged both sides to study the 12 to 13 sectors Egypt has prioritised and match them with Indian strengths, focusing on areas where the economies complement rather than compete. This, he said, could also help shape a future preferential trade agreement (PTA), free trade agreement or broader comprehensive pact.

Looking ahead to the next committee meeting in New Delhi in 2028, Egypt's Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid Saleh said, 'We should be able to report concrete progress and probably hopefully to be signing either a PTA, FTA, CEPA in that regard.'

Goyal identified affordable medicines, generics, vaccines, biosimilars and medical devices as areas where cooperation could support Egypt's goal of expanding domestic manufacturing and meeting regional healthcare needs.

In engineering and automotive, he pointed to machinery, electrical equipment, auto components, industrial manufacturing, two-wheelers, three-wheelers and commercial vehicles, saying the potential was "immense."

Goyal said the two economies complemented each other in agriculture. He also highlighted green energy and noted that an Egyptian business representative had identified education as a promising area for cooperation.

Calling Egypt a natural gateway to Africa, Asia and Europe, Goyal described the visit as 'the harbinger' of much more to come, and extended an invitation to Egyptian counterparts to visit India's shores. (ANI)