Egypt Targets $8bn Outsourcing Exports as Digital Services Push Accelerates

Egypt’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology  has outlined plans to expand digital government services, increase outsourcing exports and strengthen the country’s digital infrastructure as it seeks to accelerate technology-driven economic growth.

The plans were discussed during a meeting between Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Raafat Hindi, and a delegation from the Egyptian Businessmen’s Association led by Fathallah Fawzy, Vice Chairman of the Association and Chairman of its Real Estate Development and Contracting Committee. The meeting focused on strengthening cooperation, attracting investment into the outsourcing industry and reviewing major digital transformation projects.

Hindi said around 245 digital services are currently available through Egypt’s Digital Egypt platform, with the government targeting more than 400 services by 2030. He also highlighted the launch of a digital identity platform that will allow citizens to complete transactions requiring personal verification, including powers of attorney and documentation services, entirely online.

Egypt is also expanding domestic mobile phone manufacturing. According to the minister, local production increased from three million devices in 2024 to around 10 million in 2025. Production is expected to reach between 14 million and 15 million phones in 2026, covering a significant portion of domestic demand estimated at 18 million to 20 million devices while creating opportunities for exports.

The ministry is continuing to expand digital training and capacity-building programmes for different age groups and professional categories, with the aim of preparing Egyptian talent for both domestic and international employment opportunities.

Hindi also highlighted the development of locally built artificial intelligence applications as part of Egypt’s efforts to strengthen digital sovereignty. These include Karnak Chat, as well as an Egyptian language system capable of converting text to speech and speech to text in Arabic and Egyptian Arabic across 50 global languages. The ministry has also launched the Lughat application to support English-language learning.

On telecommunications infrastructure, the ministry is continuing to expand fibre-optic coverage across Egypt’s governorates, alongside projects to extend fibre-optic networks to villages covered by the Haya Karima presidential initiative. The government is also preparing an integrated data centre strategy expected to be launched by the end of 2026, while cybersecurity remains a key priority for protecting Egypt’s digital infrastructure and systems.

Egypt’s outsourcing industry is also a major focus of the government’s digital economy strategy. Hindi said outsourcing exports reached $5.1 billion by the end of 2025, with the ministry targeting $8 billion by 2028 amid growing interest from international outsourcing companies seeking to expand their operations in Egypt.

Ahmed El-Zaher, CEO of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), said the outsourcing sector has expanded significantly, with employment increasing from around 90,000 specialists in 2021 to more than 195,000 currently.

ITIDA is working with local and international outsourcing companies through agreements designed to expand operations and create new jobs. El-Zaher said agreements signed with 55 global companies are expected to generate around 75,000 additional jobs. He added that outsourcing growth is extending beyond Cairo to other governorates, widening access to talent and distributing employment and investment opportunities across the country.

The meeting also reviewed Egypt’s National Real Estate Identification Number system, which assigns a unique identification code to every property, residential unit and plot of land. Mahmoud Badawy, Assistant Minister for Digital Transformation, said the system is intended to prevent duplication, protect property ownership records and improve the delivery of government services.

Badawy said national identification numbers have already been generated for all buildings across Egypt, while a large number of property units have also been covered through links with utility data.

Members of the Egyptian Businessmen’s Association praised the ministry’s role in advancing Egypt’s digital infrastructure and integrating technology across government institutions. They said the effort could help reduce paper-based transactions, cut bureaucracy and create a more streamlined digital environment for businesses, investors and property developers.