Egypt called for urgent international financing to rebuild Gaza’s devastated industrial base, warning that two years of Israeli attacks have “destroyed the sector’s industrial, agricultural, and service capacities and caused the collapse of all infrastructure,” Minister of Local Development and Acting Environment Minister Manal Awad said Sunday.
Speaking at the 21st General Conference of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in Riyadh, Awad placed Gaza’s reconstruction at the center of Egypt’s appeal, urging the organization and development partners to mobilize resources for early recovery and long-term industrial redevelopment in the enclave.
Her remarks came as Egypt continues to push a diplomatic and humanitarian strategy forged after the recent cease-fire and the Sharm El-Sheikh Peace Summit, as well as the adoption of a United Nations Security Council resolution supporting an end to the conflict.
Call For Global Rebuilding Effort
Awad described Gaza as facing “the complete destruction of its manufacturing capacity,” with factories, farms, service facilities and transport networks left in ruins after consecutive years of bombardment.
Egypt, she said, is now leading international coordination to implement the Arab-Islamic Plan for Early Recovery and Reconstruction in Gaza, endorsed during the March Arab Summit. Cairo is urging UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller to secure financing for:
- Rebuilding Gaza’s industrial zones
- Restoring production facilities
- Reconstructing basic infrastructure
- Supporting small and medium-sized enterprises
- Reviving agricultural and food-processing industries
“Egypt calls on all development partners to support UNIDO’s role in rebuilding Gaza’s industrial infrastructure,” she said.
Rising Barriers Amid Global Conflicts
Awad used the Gaza crisis to highlight broader challenges faced by developing economies. She said international and regional conflicts are “severely disrupting supply chains” and contributing to global price spikes.
Developing states, she warned, also face:
- Growing obstacles to industrial financing
- Rising external debt burdens
- New climate-linked trade restrictions, including border carbon taxes
- Widening technological gaps that weaken productivity
- Intensifying climate-change impacts on agricultural and industrial output
Egypt Highlights Rapid Growth in Its Own Manufacturing Sector
Despite global headwinds, Awad emphasized Egypt’s accelerating industrial expansion, particularly in:
- Textiles
- Food industries
- Cement
- Petrochemicals
- Steel
- Automotive assembly
She noted that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi launched an emergency industrial development plan in August 2024, aiming to:
- Raise industry’s share of GDP from 14% to 20%
- Expand green industry to 5% of total output
- Increase industrial employment from 3.7 million to 7 million jobs by 2030
The plan focuses on seven pillars: deepening local manufacturing, expanding exports, reopening shuttered factories, upgrading industrial quality standards, boosting employment and training, and advancing digital and green industries.
$61 Million UNIDO- Egypt Partnership
Awad praised UNIDO for decades of cooperation and highlighted the current portfolio of 21 projects exceeding $61 million. She expressed hope for accelerated implementation under the Country Partnership Programme, signed in 2021 to align with Egypt Vision 2030.
Future collaboration, she said, will prioritize:
- Reducing climate-related trade barriers
- Supporting SMEs and micro-enterprises
- Improving access to concessional financing
- Promoting green hydrogen
- Expanding circular-economy initiatives
- Advancing digital and AI-driven manufacturing technologies
Awad also welcomed proposals to declare April 21 as International Women in Industry Day, recognizing women’s role in global manufacturing.
Egypt Presses UNIDO to Scale Up Industrial Development in Africa
Emphasizing African priorities, Egypt urged UNIDO to ensure that its policies align with African Union frameworks. Cairo welcomed calls to launch Africa’s Fourth Industrial Development Decade and reaffirmed readiness to support UNIDO’s mandate through triangular cooperation.
A Conference Framed by Regional Conflict and Industrial Ambition
The UNIDO conference, hosted by Saudi Arabia from November 23–27 and attended by representatives of 173 member states, focuses on “The Power of Investment and Partnerships to Accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Awad closed her speech by underscoring that industrial development cannot be separated from regional stability—placing Gaza’s recovery at the heart of Egypt’s diplomatic and development agenda.
