Taking To QIZ
One of those cabinet members is the minister of Foreign Trade and Industry, H. E. Rachid Mohamed Rachid, who, like many of his peers has a corporate background. Rachid came to government after a prominent career spanning more than two decades in international business. During that time, the minister served as president of Unilever North Africa, Middle East, and Turkey. He also acted as chairman of the board and as consultant for a number of multinational companies based in the United Kingdom.
One of his key staff members is Ali Awni, who now heads the offi ce’s QIZ Unit. QIZ stands for Qualifying Industrial Zones. Awni also has a corporate background as a supplychain management exper t and former par tner in KPMG Hazem Hassan.
The establishment of QIZ, begun as an initiative of the Clinton administration in 1996, has signifi cant potential for the economy of Egypt. The QIZ agreement, actually fi nalized in December 2004, enables Egyptian manufacturers in three specifi ed zones (Greater Cairo, Alexandria and the Suez Canal Zone) to export tariff-free to the United States all types of goods, provided 11.7 percent of the production materials come from Israel.
QIZ has already stimulated growth. The QIZ joint committee, consisting of business leaders and government officials from Israel, Egypt and the United States, met on February 22 to review 397 companies that applied to export under the protocol. All 397 applicants were approved. The vast majority (355 companies, or 80 percent) operate in the textile sector. Other sectors include processed food (14 companies), stone quarrying (13 companies) and furniture (6 companies).
According to Awni, "Only 40 percent of the registered companies have ever exported before, so QIZ will be providing new opportunities for many companies." He further noted that the effort has been so important to textile manufacturers that "if you ask them if they would be in business today if it weren’t QIZ, the answer would be no. Because of the lifting of the quota system on ready-made garment exports to the U.S. as of January 2005, QIZ has become a matter of survival."
So the new cabinet has already played a major role in helping with Egypt’s economic revival. And as for that slow-moving government bureaucracy? Said Awni, "For us to be able to be on board in January, have our first joint committee meeting in February, set up a Web site and approve over 400 companies, it means that you have an environment that nourishes quick response."
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