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Daily News Egypt
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily News Egypt
Egypt aims to strengthen military production ties with India: Minister
Mohamed Salah El-Din, Minister of State for Military Production, met with Suresh K. Reddy, India's ambassador to Cairo, to explore avenues for strengthening bilateral cooperation across various manufacturing sectors. The meeting took place at the ministry's headquarters in the Government District of the New Administrative Capital. Salah El-Din began by welcoming the Indian ambassador and his accompanying delegation, presenting an overview of the manufacturing, technical, and technological capabilities of the ministry's affiliated companies and units. The ministry supervises numerous industrial firms, along with a maintenance company, an information systems company, a Centre of Scientific and Technological Excellence, a construction company, and a training sector—making it a cornerstone of Egypt's national industry. He commended the significant advances in India's technological infrastructure in recent years, particularly the expansion of internet networks, enhanced data transfer capacity, and improved nationwide communication quality. In this context, he highlighted Tewya Technology, a ministry-affiliated company specialising in information systems, digital transformation, systems analysis and design, business development, and the support and maintenance of information systems for both governmental and private entities, as well as data collection and storage. The minister stressed the ministry's core mission of meeting the needs of the Armed Forces and police in terms of ammunition, weapons, and equipment. He added that surplus production capacity is utilised for manufacturing a wide range of civilian products and contributing to national and developmental projects. Salah underscored the ministry's commitment to adopting advanced technologies, diversifying both military and civilian product lines, and enhancing product quality and competitiveness in international markets. This, he noted, aligns with the directives of Egypt's political leadership to localise the latest global technologies and expand manufacturing capabilities across all sectors. Reaffirming the strong ties between Egypt and India, Salah expressed his keenness to build on this cooperation. He referred to existing partnerships, including collaboration between Helwan Diesel Engines Company (Factory 909 Military) and Ashok Leyland in diesel engine manufacturing, and between Helwan Company for Machinery and Equipment (Factory 999 Military), Bajaj of India, and a private-sector partner to produce the environmentally friendly 'Qute' vehicle. He emphasised that Egypt's economy offers promising investment opportunities, supported by large-scale national projects. Salah El-Din expressed his aspiration to establish further partnerships focused on transferring and localising advanced technologies, deepening local manufacturing, and exchanging expertise and technical information between the ministry's companies and their Indian counterparts in related fields. The meeting also included an invitation for Indian companies to participate in 'EDEX 2025,' to be held in Egypt from 1 to 4 December 2025 at the Egypt International Exhibition Centre under the patronage of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. For his part, Ambassador Reddy affirmed that Egypt is among the most promising investment destinations, thanks to its unique geographical position linking Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, along with its energy resources and advanced infrastructure that support industrial growth. He noted that Indian companies view Egypt as an ideal investment hub, not only because of its location but also due to its skilled administrative workforce and strong commitment to developing local talent. Reddy praised Egypt's pivotal role in the Arab region and the Middle East, as well as its constructive engagement on regional and international issues. He said several Indian companies are interested in opening new horizons for cooperation with Egypt's military production companies, given their continuous development and efforts to attract more global investment. He emphasised the importance of facilitating technical delegation exchanges in the coming period to review modern technologies at production facilities and to define areas of mutual cooperation.
Daily Maverick
03-06-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Maverick
After the Bell: Uber, motorbikes and disruption on the road to transport democratisation
There was virtually no change for 50 years, then suddenly a whole revolution in transport. And it hasn't ended yet; there will be more disruption to come. I am sure that I am not alone in finding that one of the biggest frustrations of driving – along with potholes, people who drive on the wrong side of the road, minibus taxis and traffic in general – is the huge rise in the number of people driving motorbikes. I don't have anything against them. They're providing an important service (including to my home), they're moving the economy and, most importantly, they're getting an income for their families. But what really irritates me is that they're forced to drive while looking at their phones. It means that you are behind them and, firstly, scared for them because they're not paying attention and, secondly, hugely irritated because they're driving so slowly as a result. I was reminded of this when I read a report that Uber is now offering what was always going to be the end point of their disruptions in how we get around. Instead of spending money and wasting space in a car, now, in some places, you can get a ride on the back of a motorbike. You can imagine the advantage of this: it's hugely cheap and so many journeys really involve one customer. It also increases your options. You can spend a fortune and arrive at an event in splendid isolation in an Uber Black, rush to that important meeting in a Comfort, just go to work in a Go, or, if you're strapped for cash (and who isn't!), use their motorbike service. It makes so much sense. So often you see someone using the Bolt service, being driven around in a little orange Qute that isn't even a car. Technically, and legally, it's a quadricycle. You probably already know the difference between the two; it's all about size. But you're still wasting all of that space. And if I was given the choice of a ride on the back of a bike, or a trip in one of those, I'd probably take the bike (so long as it's not the middle of the Gauteng winter). What I find really fascinating about this is that, first, it's following trends elsewhere. When I went to Rwanda in 2017, there were motorbikes carrying passengers everywhere. And the service obviously worked; it was quick and cheap. I'm sure the same thing happens in many other countries. But the second thing is how much disruption has occurred in our transport market in just the past 11 years or so. And how much of that has to do with Uber. Before Uber came to South Africa, the car-taxi industry hadn't really changed in about 50 years. Maybe even longer. Taxis were something you saw outside airports and train stations. You knew nothing about the drive and very little about the car. When Uber came, that way of life was not going to last. And those drivers knew it! They used violence to try to force Uber drivers out. Even quite recently, when I used the Gautrain to Pretoria, Uber drivers refused to come to the station because of the taxi men hanging around there. Last week at Cape Town International Airport, I saw people hanging around shouting 'taxi'. Compared with Uber, where you know so much about the driver, and know the car will be reliable, who would use these taxis? But if no one uses them, why are they still hanging around there? The real point though is how quickly this disruption has happened. Virtually no change for 50 years, then suddenly a whole revolution in transport. And it hasn't ended yet; there will be more disruption to come. It's a really good example of how a whole series of technologies around our phones, GPS, credit card payments and many other things have come together to make a real change in the way in which we move around. But it also reminds us of how new technologies work. They start as something cool and fun for the rich, and often end up as a necessity for the middle classes, sometimes even for those who have very little. Because of the nature of innovation involving information (think X, Facebook, and video and music streaming), often these services are available in a very democratic way when they start. In the past, most new innovations were only for the rich and stayed like that for a long time. No longer. Now you can make a lot more money providing services to everyone. Of course, there are always people who lose out. I fear there will be some attacks on people who drive these bikes. It seems to me almost inevitable that this will happen. I also hope and pray that when these drivers are carrying someone behind them, they find a way to both watch the map on the phone and keep their full attention on the road ahead. DM
