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 The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a financing agreement worth EUR 375 million with the National Bank of Egypt (NBE) to fund investments by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps in Egypt. The agreement is expected to sustain over 20,000 jobs in Egyptian firms. The financing agreement comes under the EIB’s Economic Resilience Initiative, which aims at enhancing the prospects for more resilient and inclusive growth in Egypt through financial inclusion and the creation of sustainable employment opportunities, particularly for women and in lessdeveloped areas. The EIB’s finance, which comes with support from the European Union, will be channeled by NBE to finance the investment needs of enterprises in Egypt. A percentage of the financing will target firms owned or run by women (“women in business”) as well as enterprises located in lessdeveloped areas of Egypt.

IPRs in Egypt for SMEs: Intellectual property is one of the most valuable assets of companies. They generate growth, economic development and employment. For this reason, it is important to protect company innovations and guarantee their exclusivity. This protection is an incentive for investment in R&D&i and the development of new technologies. Large companies often have people dedicated to the registration of patents and the protection of intellectual property. These practices are much less frequent in small and medium-sized companies. For this reason, the twinning programme between Egypt and Spain , funded by the European Union and managed by the FIIAPP, works together with the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (OEPM) in the development of strategies for working on intellectual property with SMEs . Several specialists from the SPTO have travelled to give workshops and training to the staff of the Egyptian Patent Office (EGPO). During one of the visits, coordinated by this cooperation project between Egypt and Spain, patent examiners were trained in intellectual protection procedures related to biotechnology . It is a complex sector, with particularities such as the bioethical implications of some innovations.8 Digitisation is a priority for patent offices around the world. The aim is to make it easier for users to use the patent application system. The Twinning Project to Strengthen the Egyptian Patent Office (EGYPO) works along these lines.9 Component 2 of the project, entitled: “Sustainable cooperation and coordination with rights holders and SMEs established within an institutional approach” focuses on sensitizing Egyptian MSMEs, SMEs and entrepreneurs regarding the importance of using the patent system to protect their inventions

InternationalTrade Agreements Egypt is a signatory to several multilateral trade agreements: The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) European Union-Egypt Free Trade Agreement (Association Agreement) Free Trade Agreement with EFTA States Turkey-Egypt Free Trade Agreement Greater Arab Free Trade Area Agreement Agadir Free Trade Agreement among Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan Egyptian-European Mediterranean Partnership Agreement The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Pan Arab Free Trade Area (PAFTA) Egypt-MERCOSUR Free Trade Agreement Moreover, Egypt has signed several bilateral agreements with Arab Countries: Jordan (December 1999), Lebanon (March 1999), Libya (January 1991), Morocco (April 1999), Syria (December 1991), and Tunisia (March 1999). Additionally, in 1995, Egypt and China entered into a trade accord. Egypt has also signed an economic treaty with Russia. In June 2001, Egypt signed an Association Agreement with the European Union (EU) which entered into force on June 1, 2004. The agreement provided for immediate duty-free access of Egyptian products into EU markets, while duty free access for EU products was phased in over a twelve-year period. In 2010, Egypt and the EU completed an agricultural annex to their FTA, liberalizing trade in over 90 percent of agricultural goods.

 Egypt’s consumer protection law is meant to protect the rights of the purchasers of goods and services, ensure fair trade and competition, and promote the circulation of correct information in the marketplace. Consumer Protection Law 67/2006 was amended in 2018 by Law 181 to give more authority to Egypt’s Consumer Protection Agency (CPA) and more rights to consumers. In 2020, the CPA received more than 169,000 complaints, including 52,000 statements of dissatisfaction with durable goods making up the majority of them. The agency can negotiate with companies or other bodies that are the object of complaints by consumers in order to find solutions that come short of legal action. This approach shortens the time needed to solve problems, makes life easier for consumers, and has led to the successful resolution of complaints pending between the companies and the courts for years.

Import Tariffs: 4 The EU-Egypt Association Agreement has been in force since 2004. It creates a free-trade area between the EU and Egypt by removing tariffs on industrial products and making agricultural products easier to trade. Another agreement on agricultural, processed agricultural and fisheries products entered into force on 1 June 2010. Egypt is the EU’s 29th largest trading partner, representing 0.7% of the EU’s total trade in goods with the world in 2020. The EU is Egypt's biggest trading partner, covering 24.5% of Egypt's trade volume in 2020. 25.8% of Egypt’s imports came from the EU and 21.8% of Egypt’s exports went to the EU.