Qatari Diar Launches Service Free Zone Within Alam El-Roum Project in Egypt

Qatari Diar announced the development of a 50,000-square-meter service free zone within the "Alam El-Roum" project on the North Coast in Egypt, to serve as an international business hub targeting information and communications technology and financial services companies.

Talib Al-Athba, Head of Development and Project Delivery for Asia and Africa at the company, said that the zone will provide a launching pad for startups and entrepreneurs into global markets, and will connect the project to international shipping routes in the Mediterranean, according to Al-Shorouk portal.

He added that the "Marasi" area within the project will include 370 yacht berths, while the entire project spans an area of 4,900 feddans with total investments reaching $29.7 billion, and is expected to create 250,000 job opportunities upon completion.

For his part, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid Saleh stated that the private sector's share of total investments in Egypt rose to about 65% during the third quarter of the fiscal year 2025/2026, compared to levels ranging between 40% and 45%. The minister noted that foreign direct investment inflows reached about $18 billion by the end of fiscal year 2026, emphasizing that achieving growth between 5.5% and 6.5% requires raising the investment rate to about 25% of gross domestic product.

What do these terms mean?

Free Zone: An area subject to reduced procedures and taxes to attract companies and investments, facilitating the movement of goods and services.

Foreign Direct Investment: Funds injected by investors from outside the country into domestic projects, such as building a factory or developing a real estate project.

Feddan: A unit of land area measurement in Egypt, equal to approximately 4,200 square meters.