Egypt and Qatari Diar on Thursday signed an agreement for a $29.7 billion luxury coastal development on the country’s Mediterranean shore, marking the largest Qatari investment in Egypt to date.
Qatari Diar, the real estate arm of Doha’s sovereign wealth fund, will develop Samla and Alam Al Roum, a 7km stretch of coastline about 480km north-west of Cairo.
The mega development will be a high‑end destination featuring golf courses, marinas, residential districts, schools, universities and government centres when completed, Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced at the signing ceremony.
The deal is the first of a broader investment package of direct Qatari investments amounting to $7.5 billion, which was agreed when Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi visited Doha in April and attended a business forum.
The deal with Egypt’s New Urban Communities Authority includes a $3.5 billion payment for the land and an in‑kind investment worth $26.2 billion to build the 20-million-square-metre project.
The investment agreement on Thursday was signed by housing minister Sherif El Sherbiny on the Egyptian side and the chairman of Qatari Diar's board Abdullah Al Attiya at a ceremony in Egypt's New Administrative Capital.
“This project … is a new step that reflects the depth of our nations' brotherly bonds and upholds our ongoing economic and investment co-operation,” Mr Al Attiya, who also serves as Qatar's Minister of Municipality, said after the signing ceremony.
The project is expected to create tens of thousands of “direct and indirect jobs”, Mr Al Attiya said, adding that it would also seek to bolster the role of the private sector in Egypt.
The signing of the deal was overseen by Mr Madbouly who said that the agreement was the result of “months of daily meetings between the Egyptian and Qatari sides” that were “full of discussions and disagreements that I had to step in to resolve at times”.
He said the development is another example of his government's commitment to developing the country's Mediterranean coast, much of it is virgin land.
The agreement stipulates a $3.5 billion upfront payment by the end of next month, in addition to an in‑kind share of completed units covering about 397,000 square metres and valued at about $1.8 billion, which will be handed to the Egyptian authority as part of its stake in the project, Mr Madbouly confirmed.
After Qatari Diar recovers its investment costs, Egypt will also receive 15 per cent of the project’s annual revenue, Mr Madbouly said.
Aside from the hotels and resorts which will be built as part of the development, the investments will also cover the construction of new residences, schools, hospitals to support civilian life in Alam Al Roum.
Mr Madbouly also estimated that the project would create upwards of 250,000 jobs for Egyptians.
The announcement follows the $35 billion Ras El Hekma agreement Egypt signed in February last year with a consortium led by Abu Dhabi’s state holding company ADQ, which aims to transform another stretch of Mediterranean coast into a global tourism and investment hub.
Both deals are central to Cairo’s strategy to attract Gulf capital and address its foreign‑exchange shortages and debt challenges.
Analysts say the Qatari investment could also help unlock delayed International Monetary Fund disbursements tied to earlier reform commitments.
