The value of Egypt’s exports to the Nile Basin countries reached $1.55 billion in 2021, compared to $1.19 billion in 2020, a rise of 29.5 percent.
The surge which was seen in 2021 still represents a 27 percent increase over pre-pandemic levels, when the value of its exports to the region stood at $1.22 billion.
According to the latest data released last month by Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), trade exchange between Egypt and the Nile Basin countries increased by 32.6 percent in 2021.
The increase puts the countries back on their previous steady upward trajectory after the slight decline observed in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Egypt’s recent efforts to make a cooperation with the region one of the cornerstones of its foreign policy, motivated by the conflict with Ethiopia over the management of the river’s water but also by security and economic opportunities, are reflected in the expansion of trade relations between Egypt and the nations of the Nile Basin.
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A notable effort has been made to increase Egypt’s economic presence in Africa,” said Zaynab Mohamed, a political analyst at Oxford Economics Africa.
Mohamed added that Egypt relies heavily on the Nile for its water supply.
“The government’s emphasis on fostering trade in the Nile Basin is a part of a plan to build better ties with upstream states. At the same time, it is engaged in a dispute with Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam”.
A 2020 study on this exchange found that Egypt’s exports to the nations of the Nile Basin barely exceeded $200 million during the first decade of the 2000s. This skyrocketed to about $900 million in 2009, and after that, it remained largely stable at about $1 billion until a recent increase that saw it pass the $1.5 billion threshold for the first time last year.
