Egypt was among the few countries to record a significant rise in international project finance in 2024, at a time when such flows declined globally, according to Richard Bolwijn, Director of the Investment Research Branch at UNCTAD.
Speaking during the launch of the World Investment Report 2025 in Cairo, Bolwijn highlighted Egypt’s role in driving Africa’s rebound in foreign direct investment (FDI), which rose by 75% across the continent.
“Egypt stood out due to several large-scale projects,” he said. “Even when we exclude the major megaprojects, Africa still recorded a 40% increase in FDI inflows — and Egypt was a key contributor to that trend.”
He explained that global project finance has experienced a multi-year decline, especially in infrastructure and energy, but Egypt bucked that trend.
“International project finance has been decreasing globally since 2010, but Egypt was an exception last year,” Bolwijn noted. “It managed to attract significant volumes of project finance while most countries saw contraction.”
Bolwijn also pointed to Egypt’s potential to benefit from global shifts in manufacturing investment, especially as multinational companies restructure supply chains.
“Countries close to major markets, with reform momentum and access to trade agreements, like Egypt, are well positioned to attract new industrial investments,” he said.
While global FDI declined by 11% in 2024, and project announcements were at record lows in early 2025, Egypt’s resilience was repeatedly referenced throughout the report and event.
Bolwijn concluded by calling on countries to strengthen investment promotion, focus on digital infrastructure, and prioritize sectors less affected by global trade uncertainty.