At this year’s EnterpriseAM Egypt Forum, we invited scene-setter Marsheq Group CEO Ahmed Abdelaal to talk about the path ahead for Egypt and key regional players to drive growth and deepen cooperation. Abdelaal discussed Egypt’s role at the heart of a changing regional and global economy, including why he thinks there is room for Egypt, the UAE and Saudi to cooperate. Delving into why he thinks Egypt can turn its geography, talent, and scale into last economic power.

Setting the stage: Dynamics between the three big players in the region – Egypt, Saudi and the UAE – are often framed in terms of competition. Instead, Abdelaal sees it as an “ecosystem, where the three can complement each other,” existing in symbiosis. “Each country brings completely different and fundamental aspects to the region. Working together they can definitely drive the entire region to where it should be over the coming few years.”

What Egypt brings to the table: Egypt stands out as the core engine for talent, with “human capital being one of the best and most underutilized assets it has to offer,” Abdelaal said. In Egypt, “we are focused on reskilling and upskilling our talent pools so that they are able to entertain the new wave of requirements coming from the UAE – for example when it comes to tech or AI,” Abdelaal explained.

Location, location, location: Egypt also leverages its unique connectivity, with its location making a huge difference in accessibility for the GCC, Europe and – most importantly – from South to South, which Abdelaal declared “the new rising force,” of the moment. That said, our connectivity to Africa consolidates “a unique position as far as the GCC is concerned, compared to its other two counterparts.”

On the flip side, Saudi has deep pockets, financial minds and ambitions to become a global industrial hub. When it comes to energy, we see heavy investments in renewables – a sector which “they will master over the next coming years.”

While over in the UAE, dedicated investments are being plugged into tech, AI and expanding global connectivity. The UAE’s strong execution capacity and innovation policy is also propelling the Kingdom forward.

There’s room to cooperate, not just to compete: “Rather than creating a race for duplicating, or doing more of the same across the three locations,” each country should leverage on its unique offering and work together to propel growth in the region, Abdelaal noted.

Plenty of investors are eyeing Egypt. “When I’m speaking to investors, whether in the GCC or in Egypt, there is a huge interest in the country. We need to expand discussions on the matter, as well as emphasize the growth of a South–South corridor.”

It’s at a very early stage: Investors aren’t so worried about taking risks, in fact they are in the business of doing so. “They are a lot more worried about uncertainty, which is what balances out the investment.” Egypt is looking to improve its levels of transparency to attract and secure global investments, particularly those coming in from the GCC. The gov’t has deployed “new rules of regulation that provide this kind of transparency.”

Investors are looking for mutual benefits, expecting full transparency, clear rules of engagement and no hold-ups. The more “we are able to promote that, the more we will invite investment interest,” Abdelaal clarified. For example, Saudi can look outwards, if you offer the Kingdom solutions which complement their agenda.

Leveraging existing trade corridors: The Brics present a “fantastic chance for Egypt to expand the scope of its reach,” as well as investor interest, which we can build on by combining our ties to African and European markets, with the GCC’s links to Asia, Abdelaal said. Rather than building these links from scratch, Egypt can “position itself as an extension of the GCC’s existing corridor,” to become the springboard between African, Asian and European markets.

Privatization versus public opinion: Storytelling is a crucial component of how we build consensus that foreign investment is positive. “Explaining the narrative and the context of these investments to the mass public is important and it has to be a continuous process,” Abdelaal explained. “We need to follow a sustainable framework of communication that explains to the critical mass of the public that these investments do not compromise the sovereignty of the country.” It’s also important to explain “what’s in it for them,” be it job creation to improve the health of the general economy.

Integrating AI into our market: We shouldn’t think of AI as a “threat”, but as more of “an enabler, to increase efficiency, manage risk, offer heightened customer experience and cut costs,” Abdelaal said. “It’s a fantastic opportunity for organizations to expand, because this is the only way that you can do that without increasing your cost.”

Changing the narrative: Egypt has “come a long way, but we still have a lot more to do,” Abdelaal stressed. In Egypt, “we often talk about hurdles, issues, but we don’t talk about successes,” – which is best for attracting investors. “We need to be more constructive,” when we are publicly discussing what we are doing as a country.

A hopeful outlook for 2026: The next year will be a “pivot point for the entire region,” after undergoing significant periods of geopolitical turbulence, Abdelaal said. “The next year is going to be transformatory,” he predicts. That said, Egypt has “the ingredients, the strategy, the ambition to ride the incoming wave.”

Tap or click here to read the panel’s full transcript.

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