Samih Sawiris stopped his investments in Egypt.. the ruin reaches everyone amid the impotence of “Sisi”

The businessman and founder of Orascom, and one of the richest businessmen in Egypt and the world, announced his decision, on Tuesday evening, to stop his investments in Egypt, to represent the harshest message of the Egyptian regime, which has corrupted the economy and achieved a complete failure on all levels, and helped to flee investments from Egypt in an accelerated manner.

Samih complained about the investment climate in Egypt, revealing his intention to transfer his investments to neighboring countries.

Sawiris had made statements about the investment climate, during a televised interview with Al-Arabiya and CNBC Arabia, and it spread widely through their accounts on the communication sites and the tweeters re-published them, in which he emphasized the difficulties faced by investors in Egypt.

Exacerbation of the crisis of dollar shortage and inflation

A gloomy atmosphere prevails in Egypt with the exacerbation of the dollar shortage and inflation crisis, amid expectations of international institutions and global banks of further economic collapse in Egypt, against the backdrop of the army’s control of economic projects and Sisi’s insistence on his economic approach by expanding the spending of Egypt’s money on large funchose projects with no economic return or feasibility.

Observers and experts considered Sawiris’ decision a strong blow to the Egyptian economy, and the regime must rectify its causes and quickly take decisions and policies to reassure investors, attract new investments to Egypt, and document the series of economic ruin.

While the writer and political expert, Ammar Ali Hassan, warned of the matter, saying: “Samih Sawiris’s words about his refusal to invest in Egypt now are very dangerous. It goes down to the fifth, and those who have acquired most things sell them, and since there is no one to buy, they come to a dead end.”

Abu Dhabi Sovereign Fund

A few days ago, the Abu Dhabi Sovereign Fund (ADQ Holding), the main Emirati investment vehicle in Egypt, froze its investment projects inside the country, according to what the “Financial Times” quoted an informed banker, after spending last year about $ 4 billion to acquire minority stakes. in Egyptian companies.

The source said, “There is no appetite for any substantial investments at the present time.”

This is the decision taken by both Saudi Arabia and Qatar earlier, following their demand for economic reform in Egypt before pumping financial investments.

Meanwhile, Egypt suffers from a severe shortage of foreign currency, in addition to a funding gap estimated by Standard & Poor’s at about $37 billion in foreign financing until June 2024.

The collapse of the investment environment and the flight of investors

With the collapse of the investment environment and the flight of investors from Egypt, because they lack the ability to compete with army companies that do not pay taxes, wages and salaries to recruits, taxes and customs, Sisi no longer has many other solutions other than selling assets to attract foreign direct investment, in light of the concern of foreign investors and the continued contraction of The Private Sector As a result of the worsening economic crisis, without direct investments from the Gulf states and other Gulf financing flows, Egypt will have to resort to withdrawing from its limited cash reserves.

On Friday before last, Standard & Poor’s, the global credit rating agency and investor services, lowered its outlook on Egyptian debt from stable to negative, warning of the dangers of the inability to meet the country’s external financing needs if the economic reforms associated with the International Monetary Fund loan program were not implemented. The pessimistic expectations reflect, according to the agency, the risks that the policies implemented by the Egyptian authorities are insufficient to achieve exchange rate stability and attract foreign currency inflows necessary to meet external financing needs.

And with the continuation of Sisi’s military policies and approach, which expands the military’s control over the joints of the state and the economy, more ruin and the exodus of investments from Egypt will be the least that can be expected from future crises.