El Sherbiny: We are keen on the continued success of the Arab Contractors Company and facing the challenges that hinder its progress, as it is one of the pillars of the Egyptian contracting sector.
Eng. Sherif El Sherbiny - Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities, chaired the General Assembly of the Arab Contractors Company, where the company's financial statements for the fiscal year 2022/2023 and the draft planning budget for the fiscal year 2024/2025 were approved.
The approval was given to increase the authorized capital from LE 10 to LE 15 billion and increase the issued and paid-in capital from LE 8.5 to 9.25 billion by an increase of LE 750 million.
During his speech at the company's general assembly meeting, Eng. Sherif El Sherbiny stated that the fiscal year 2022/2023 witnessed several economic challenges, the most important of which are the rise in inflation and interest rates and changes in energy pricing, which affected investment spending in the economic sectors of most countries, including Egypt.
It also had a significant impact on the rise in the prices of goods and services, the rearrangement of aspects and priorities of public spending. However, Egypt dealt with these challenges with a balanced and rapid policy, by continuing to take the necessary measures to mitigate the effects of these challenges and contain the greatest amount of inflationary pressures on citizens, by taking many measures by increasing wages and pensions, taking decisions to double the mechanisms and means of social protection, and continuing projects that affect the daily lives of citizens, aiming to improve their living conditions. Among the most important of these projects are the presidential initiative "Decent Life" to develop the Egyptian countryside, the presidential initiative "Housing for All Egyptians," developing drinking water and wastewater projects, expanding their production capacity, developing basic facilities, projects to develop unsafe and unplanned slums, and other development projects. The state also targeted projects that achieve renewable energy usage (water desalination - safe disposal and recycling of waste), with the aim of achieving high and sustainable growth to improve the standard and quality of daily life for citizens.
The Minister of Housing added that the Arab Contractors Company is considered one of the important investment arms for implementing development and growth plans in the Egyptian state, and contributing to enhancing Egypt's image abroad by implementing development projects in African and Arab countries. Therefore, the company has to work continuously to support its competitiveness and obtain a market share of the projects offered domestically and abroad to ensure its continued growth. Besides, the company has to use its capabilities and energies efficiently and effectively, which supports its leading position in this sector in light of a multi-risk, rapidly changing, and continuously modernizing environment, especially that the company has accumulated experience and a record full of achievements. The company’s business results during 2022/2023 showed the completion of 135 projects, a growth in the value of the implemented work of 19.6% than the previous year; an increase in the total equity of the company, and the continuation of increasing its paid-in capital as a result of its work, so that the total amount paid from the increase in paid-in capital during the previous 5 years reached LE 2.750 billion without any burdens on the state’s budget. The company also provides tens of thousands of job opportunities.
Eng. Sherif El Sherbiny concluded his speech at the General Assembly of the Arab Contractors Company by emphasizing the state’s keenness to ensure the company’s continued success and to face the challenges that hinder its path towards growth in a way that achieves good management of the state’s assets as one of its most important companies in implementing the most important national projects throughout the state’s successive economic and social development plans.