Ahmed Rostom, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, has directed the reallocation of investment priorities for the National Investment Bank (NIB) and its investment arm NI Capital Holding to enhance their role in supporting development and economic growth. This came during a Saturday meeting with Ashraf Negm, NIB’s Managing Director and Deputy Chairperson, and Mohamed Metwally, CEO and Managing Director of NI Capital Holding.
Rostom emphasized that the current phase requires transforming the National Investment Bank into a strategic development partner, directing investments toward sectors with the greatest impact on economic growth while ensuring effective governance of public investment spending. As part of efforts to strengthen the group's developmental role, the minister directed a reordering of the investment program to focus on three main priorities.
The first priority involves supporting spatial development by strengthening economic clusters in governorates, aiming to turn development projects into productive engines that support local value chains. This approach aligns with the presidential Decent Life initiative, which seeks to promote economic transformation in villages and shift from direct support to sustainable economic empowerment.
The second priority focuses on financing the innovation economy, including expanding the group's role in supporting the entrepreneurship ecosystem through the creation of an investment platform dedicated to funding start-ups, alongside providing flexible financing tools for innovative projects. The goal is to enable entrepreneurs to transform promising ideas into viable ventures capable of generating quality jobs and strengthening the knowledge-based economy.
The third track targets sustainable infrastructure financing, including studying the expansion of innovative mechanisms to fund infrastructure and logistics projects. These mechanisms are expected to accelerate the implementation of vital projects and attract additional domestic and foreign investment without imposing further burdens on the state budget.
Rostom stated that NI Capital plays a pivotal role in developing investment tools and strengthening private-sector participation in financing development projects with promising returns, thereby enhancing the Egyptian economy's capacity to attract long-term development financing for strategic opportunities. He added that integration between the ministry's planning policies and the National Investment Bank's investment arms represents a key pillar in building a modern development finance system capable of supporting major projects and delivering more sustainable and competitive growth, with a direct impact on improving citizens' quality of life.