Egypt, Saudi Arabia sign 3 financial leasing agreements worth LE 125M

CAIRO – 10 July 2019: Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr signed Wednesday three financing agreements worth LE 125 million with Saudi Arabia Fund Management Committee, affiliated to Saudi Arabia's Development Fund.

In a statement, Nasr said that the agreements had been signed with EFG-Hermes Leasing, Global Leasing and UA Finance.

The agreements were signed in the presence of Minister of Transport Kamel Al-Wazir, and Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Cairo Osama al-Nugali, within the framework of the initiative of the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation to support project finance programs and provide financial leasing services for small, medium and micro enterprises.

The first agreement stipulates that the kingdom's management committee would provide LE 75 million of financing to EFG-Hermes, 50 percent of which would be directed towards the agricultural sector and livestock.

According to the second agreement, the committee would provide a LE 25 million finance for Global Leasing, and the third agreement will offer LE 25 million for AU finance.

The agreements stipulate that micro, small and medium enterprises working in the fields of new and renewable energy, health care, industry, agriculture and livestock in Upper Egypt and Delta governorates will benefit from these finances, according to the ministers.

Financial lease services will include the purchase of machinery, equipment, construction and transportation for beneficiary projects, either existing or newly constructed. The amount of financing granted to entrepreneurs may reach 100 percent of the investment cost of the project, accelerating the growth of these companies and maximizing the results of their business.

She stressed that these agreements are grants provided by the Saudi Fund for Development to support small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurship, pointing out that this grant contributes to giving the private sector a greater role in the diversity of financial instruments that contribute to supporting entrepreneurs.