By: Robert
Kwaku Annor
Egypt has launched a new
digital licensing service for public establishments through the Egypt Digital
Platform, aimed at simplifying procedures for business owners, improving
government service delivery and supporting the country’s digital transformation
agenda.
The service was officially
inaugurated by Dr. Manal Awad, Minister of Local Development and Environment,
and Eng. Raafat Hindi, Minister of Communications and Information Technology,
during a ceremony held at the Ministry of Local Development and Environment
headquarters in the New Administrative Capital.
The initiative was developed
through collaboration between the Ministries of Local Development and
Environment, Communications and Information Technology, and Planning and
Economic Development, with the objective of creating a faster, more transparent
and fully digital process for obtaining public establishment licences.
Speaking at the launch, Dr.
Manal Awad said the new service represents a major step toward improving the
investment environment and facilitating government procedures for citizens and
business owners.
She explained that the
digital licensing system will unify procedures across Egypt’s governorates,
reduce processing times, improve transparency and provide applicants with the
ability to track their requests electronically through the Egypt Digital Platform.
The Minister noted that the
system will also help integrate informal businesses into the formal economy by
making licensing procedures easier and more accessible. She added that the
platform introduces several new measures, including temporary permits that
allow eligible businesses to begin operations while completing required
approvals.
Eng. Raafat Hindi said the
launch demonstrates the success of cooperation among government institutions in
using Egypt’s digital infrastructure to deliver more efficient public services.
He highlighted that Egypt
has continued to strengthen the foundations of digital government through key
systems, including the government digital switch, digital identity, electronic
signature and the Digital Vault, which enable secure data exchange between
government entities.
According to the Minister,
the Egypt Digital Platform currently provides more than 240 digital services to
citizens and businesses and serves over 12 million users.
He added that the new public
establishment licensing service is the first government service to benefit from
the Digital Vault’s capabilities by allowing authenticated digital documents to
be reused during service delivery, reducing reliance on paper documents and
improving efficiency.
The Digital Vault system
enables citizens to store, access and use verified government documents
electronically, supporting Egypt’s transition toward a paperless government
model based on secure data exchange.
The launch event brought
together government officials, members of parliament, representatives of
chambers of commerce and stakeholders from the technology and business sectors.
Chairman of the Federation
of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, Ahmed El-Wakil, welcomed the initiative,
saying chambers would support awareness campaigns to encourage business owners
to adopt the new digital licensing system.
The Egyptian government said
the service forms part of its broader strategy to accelerate digital
transformation, enhance public-private sector collaboration and create a more
efficient and business-friendly environment through technology-driven solutions.
