Egypt's Sisi says part of UAE investment funds reached central bank

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Wednesday that part of the funds from a $35 billion investment deal signed with Emirati sovereign fund ADQ had arrived in Egypt's central bank. Egypt, which has been struggling with an economic crisis and a long-running shortage of foreign currency, signed the agreement on Friday for an ADQ-led consortium to develop the Ras El Hekma peninsula on Egypt's Mediterranean coast and carry out other unspecified projects.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Wednesday that part of the funds from a $35 billion investment deal signed with Emirati sovereign fund ADQ had arrived in Egypt's central bank.

Egypt, which has been struggling with an economic crisis and a long-running shortage of foreign currency, signed the agreement on Friday for an ADQ-led consortium to develop the Ras El Hekma peninsula on Egypt's Mediterranean coast and carry out other unspecified projects. Egypt's prime minister said last week the agreement would bring $35 billion of investments to the indebted country over the next two months, including $15 billion within a week.

"Today part of it arrived in the central bank, and another amount will arrive on Friday," Sisi said at an event for differently-abled people in Cairo, thanking the United Arab Emirates and its President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. "I want to tell you it is not easy for anyone to put in $35 billion over two months, there is nothing like that in the world … This is a form of support and standing (with us), clearly", Sisi said.

The agreement is expected to provide a big short-term boost for Egypt's faltering economy. One dealer in central Cairo was offering 48 pounds to buy one dollar on Wednesday, down from more than 60 to the dollar before the Ras al-Hikma deal was announced last week.

'STAND WITH US' Since Sisi came to power, Egypt has received tens of billions of dollars in bailouts from wealthy Gulf states that backed his toppling of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood in 2013.

But more recently Gulf states have signalled that they are only prepared to put new money into Egypt for valuable assets or profitable investments. ADQ insists its mandate is purely commercial, according to people close to the company. However, it is chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, who as well as being a prominent businessman is UAE national security adviser and seen as a foreign policy troubleshooter for his brother, the president.

"Our brothers in the Gulf always stand with us, but I want to particularly emphasise the UAE's stance in this topic, because the economic situation in Egypt has been difficult for the past four years," Sisi said on Wednesday. ADQ, the smallest of Abu Dhabi's three main sovereign investment funds, has said work will begin in early 2025 on a "next generation city" over 170 square kilometres at Ras El Hekma.

Ras El Hekma lies about 200 km (124 miles) west of Alexandria in an area of upscale tourist resorts and white sand beaches. "We are not talking about just two, three or four months in the winter or the summer, we are talking about something that has life all year round, with many activities, some of which will be in Egypt for the first time," Sisi said.