07 Dec 2020; MEMO: Egypt and the United Kingdom signed an agreement on Saturday to strengthen political and trade ties. The agreement was signed between the British Ambassador to Egypt, Sir Geoffrey Adams, and Egypt's Assistant Foreign Minister for Europe, Badr Abdelatty.
In an official statement, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said that the agreement would allow British businesses and consumers "to benefit from continued preferential access to the Egyptian market," adding that the accord would also provide a "framework for cooperation and further development of joint political, economic, social and cultural links."
"The UK is committed to strengthening its relationship with Egypt and building co-operation on important issues including education, the environment and human rights," the FCO statement read.
The agreement, the FCO pointed out, would provide "tariff-free trade on industrial products, as well as liberalisation of trade in agriculture, agri-foods and fisheries which will make trade easier and deliver significant savings to businesses in both the UK and Egypt."
In 2019, the total trade on goods and services between the UK and Egypt was reported to have amounted to £3.5 billion ($223.5 billion).
