ants Pepsi and Coca cola, through their Saudi Arabian partners, plan to invest nearly a billion dollars in Egypt as the north African country, which was hit hard by a series of political and economic setbacks during the Arab Spring, enters a peaceful transition after former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was elected as president.A Reuters report quoted Saudi Arabia’s Almarai, the Gulfs biggest diary company, saying that together with Pepsi, they plan to invest at least $345 million, with hopes of reaching $560 million, in Egypt over the next five years. The investment it said will be through Egyptian dairy and juice products firm International Company for Agro-Industrial Projects (Beyti), a subsidiary of International Dairy & Juice Ltd, which is owned 52 percent by Almarai and the remainder by Pepsi.
The $345 million investment plan, approved by Almarai’s board, includes setting up a new juice factory, expanding existing facilities, increasing Beyti’s fleet of vehicles and sales network, and creating a new dairy farm for 5,000 cows, Beyti’s chief executive Mohamed Badran told Reuters.
In a similar investment Coca cola announced in March it plans to invest $500 million in the country with $100 million of the money going into building a new Juice plant near Cairo in a joint project with Saudi Arabia’s Aujan Coca-Cola Beverages Co.
Reuters said the announcement was a fresh sign that after three years of stagnation because of political and economic turmoil following Egypt’s 2011 revolution, foreign investment in the country may revive as a measure of stability returns.
This year’s election of former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as president has raised hopes for greater political stability and better economic management of the country and foreign companies see Egypt as a potential export base for markets in Africa and Middle East due to its strategic location.
