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AmCham Egypt Mission to the United States, March 1998

The American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt's 1998 DoorKnock mission to the United States encountered one of its warmest receptions in recent memory. Despite the occurrence of a number of policy disputes between the United States and Egypt since our last mission, our delegates were assured again and again by their contacts in Washington that these issues were merely disagreements between friends, and that the strategic partnership that has created an important base of stability in the region remains as strong as ever.

Heartened by this welcoming atmosphere, AmCham’s delegation successfully spread the message of the important new policy developments in Egypt in the recent past. The DoorKnock program began with a briefing on Sunday, March 8 by AmCham Egypt president Dr. Ahmed Shawki in which he set the mood for the week to come and highlighted the objectives of the mission. H.E. Maher El Sayed, Egyptian ambassador to the United States, summarized the problems facing Egypt on Capitol Hill and the current positive economic climate in Egypt. He recognized and stressed the private sector role in promoting the U.S.-Egypt relationship. The next day, the DoorKnock delegation began its traditional week's visit in Washington - making American policymakers aware of the important new developments in Egypt's economy and policies, and highlighting the dramatically improving atmosphere for U.S. business investing in Egypt.

In conjunction with the 1998 DoorKnock mission to Washington, D.C., the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt conducted a business mission to the State of North Carolina and to the City of New York. AmCham Egypt received an invitation from Representative Sue Myrick to conduct a business mission to North Carolina and in particular the city of Charlotte. The mission was comprised of eight prominent Egyptian businessmen interested in meeting with their U.S. counterparts to discuss issues of mutual benefit.

The Carolinas Export Assistance Center (USEAC) arranged one-on-one meetings for the AmCham delegation in the following industry sectors: textile, chemicals, apparel, lumber, environment technology, heavy equipment, maritime and water-treatment facilities.

The business mission to New York targeted financial institutions. The 12-member AmCham Egypt delegation, together with the chairman of the Egyptian stock exchange, met with senior executives from Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s Institutional Investors, Citibank, James Capel and Robert Fleming. In addition, the Bank of New York and Chase Manhatten Bank hosted special luncheon events on the occasion of the AmCham visit.

The delegation found that the level of interest in Egypt’s markets had dramatically increased in just one year. New York’s financial community proved to be highly knowledgeable and focused on specific areas of interest to their clients.

Throughout the meetings, the representatives of these institutions confirmed Egypt’s significant economic reform measures and the great success and healthy growth enjoyed by the Egyptian capital market. The executives were impressed with the recent developments achieved within the Egyptian stock exchange and offered to encourage their clients to invest in Egypt.

Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s particularly expressed that Egypt’s investment-grade ratings have lately been upgraded and indicated their belief that the Asian crisis and the Luxor incident would have no negative impact on the stock exchange. They also assured that Egypt’s economy will grow as predicated by the Government of Egypt. The AmCham delegation was invited to come back in the near future with specific projects and offered to assist with the privatization process.

In Washington, the visit was much stronger and supportive than in the recent past. Officials of the Clinton administration and members of Congress continued to express their appreciation and support for the significant economic reforms being implemented under the direction of Prime Minister El Ganzouri. There was considerable knowledge of the recent changes in Egypt, and many senior members of Congress focused their questions on specific business sectors that hold potential opportunities for their own constituents. The administration and Congress uniformly expressed their belief that the continuation of policy directions of the El Ganzouri cabinet will lead Egypt forward into an increasingly broader scope of economic growth, and will necessarily result in significant improvements in the welfare of the Egyptian people. They pledged their commitment to remaining engaged to assist this process as it develops.

In total, the Washington DoorKnock schedule included nearly 120 meetings with officials from a wide range of offices in the administration, Congress and Washington-based think-tanks and international organizations. The schedule included 87 meetings and briefings with congressional members and staff, 19 meetings with officials of the Clinton administration, and numerous discussions with the International Finance Corporation, the World Bank, the Nixon Center, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, the Middle East Institute, AIPAC, the Washington Times, the Washington Institute for Peace, the Arab-American Institute, and the Center for Strategic & International Studies. This balanced and comprehensive schedule allowed the delegation to spread its message on a broad and thorough basis.

Aside from the traditional meetings with American policymakers, AmCham once again hosted a well-attended reception at the Metropolitan Club and a luncheon at the Hall of Flags at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. At this year's luncheon, AmCham was honored to have Sherif Raafat, the chairman of the Egyptian stock exchange, as the luncheon speaker.

For the first time in the history of AmCham’s visits, AmCham sponsored a roundtable discussion with various participants from the public and private sector as well as the academic community. This event, entitled "A Vision for the Middle East into the 21st Century," proved to be an excellent opportunity for the delegation to take part in lively debate by policy experts on a variety of topics.

The AmCham Egypt delegation emphasized that Egypt is the gateway to the region, that the Middle East is greater than the sum of its parts and that collective economic powers are greater than any single country. The vital role that Egypt can play as a regional power was stressed. Fruitful discussions focused on regional economic cooperation, on how economic linkages could be a catalyst towards attaining peace and on the role of the United States in promoting greater regional cooperation.

The Egyptian Press Office in Washington hosted a press breakfast for the delegation at the National Press Club. The small but targeted audience was specifically chosen for their influence and knowledge of the region.

In these informal settings, and on a more personal level, the DoorKnock delegates were able to gain wide exposure within the Washington international community, and to spread the message of Egypt’s success and growing momentum. The delegation feels that important relationships were born out of these meetings.

Considerable discussions focused on an Egypt-U.S. free-trade agreement and on the need for the United States to relax its textile quotas on Egyptian garments.

There was consistent praise for the successful implementation of economic reforms taking place in Egypt's private sector and encouragement for future privatization efforts. In general, this environment was receptive to the delegation's message of progress.

During this trip, the delegation spread the message of Egypt's growth to a receptive audience. It is firmly believed that several significant investments were made in the Washington 'policy-making' community which will prove, in the long run, to secure a strong voice for Egypt with the U.S. government in years to come. The mission indicated that the future holds an ever stronger and ever more effective U.S.-Egyptian business and commercial relationship. The delegation was encouraged to maintain regular contact with Washington policymakers as well as increase its exposure to business communities nationwide.

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