Egypt, Sudan agree on executive measures to boost bilateral trade

Updated 12/29/2025 12:23:00 PM

Arab Finance: Egypt and Sudan agreed on a broad package of executive measures to deepen economic integration and increase bilateral trade, the Egyptian Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade stated.

This came after the Egyptian-Sudanese Joint Trade and Industry Committee convened in Cairo on Monday, December 29th, co-chaired by Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El-Khatib and Sudan’s Minister of Industry and Trade Mahasin Ali Yaqoub.

The meetings, held with the participation of senior officials from both countries, focused on strengthening trade, investment, and industrial cooperation in line with the close ties between Egypt and Sudan.

El-Khatib underlined Egypt’s commitment to supporting Sudan during its economic recovery through strategic partnerships and expanded trade and investment relations, stressing the importance of regular committee meetings and sustained coordination between government bodies and the private sector to accelerate progress toward shared economic goals.

Yaqoub said the committee’s work reflects the depth of relations between the two countries and their readiness to combine efforts to achieve economic integration.

She called for developing trade and investment ties, expanding trade exchange, and facilitating the transfer of expertise and training, while emphasizing the need for continuous coordination to remove obstacles hindering bilateral trade in a manner that reflects the potential of both economies.

At the conclusion of the meetings, the two ministers signed the minutes of the committee’s proceedings, which included agreements covering several priority areas of mutual interest.

Both sides praised the existing level of economic cooperation between Cairo and Khartoum and reaffirmed their commitment to increasing bilateral trade, which reached approximately $1.15 billion in 2024.

The agreements include forming a technical working group to enhance trade and prioritize commodity exchange, as well as studying a draft memorandum of understanding between Egypt’s General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) and Sudan’s National Investment Authority.

The proposed memorandum aims to strengthen investment cooperation and transfer Egyptian expertise, particularly in free zone management and the implementation of single-window systems.

The two sides also agreed to prioritize Egyptian companies in Sudan’s reconstruction projects, with Egypt pledging technical support to help restart Sudanese factories damaged by the war.

Training programs for Sudanese customs personnel are set to begin next January.

Additional measures focus on harmonizing technical specifications for traded goods and establishing a mechanism to recognize conformity certificates issued by both countries to facilitate the movement of goods.

The discussions also covered increasing the number of trucks and buses crossing border points, securing financing for logistics zones along the shared border, and holding a conference for directors of land border crossings next January to address congestion challenges.

On the financial front, Egypt and Sudan agreed to update the memorandum of understanding between their central banks to include governance, financial inclusion, anti-money laundering, and counter-terrorism financing.

They also agreed to exchange expertise in agricultural and veterinary quarantine and disease control.

Both sides committed to closely monitoring the implementation of the committee’s outcomes through regular reporting and to maintaining periodic meetings of the Joint Trade and Industry Committee.

The next session is scheduled to take place in Khartoum during the first half (H1) of 2027.