New Sea Line Will Facilitate Agricultural Trade Between Egypt & Italy

The governments of Egypt and Italy have signed an agreement to establish a new rapid sea transport line between the ports of Damietta and Trieste, which would involve a roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) cargo shipping system with a capacity of 420 trucks per week. The Ro-Ro cargo line will be used to facilitate trade of rapidly perishable agricultural crops from Egypt to Italy and other nations across Europe, as well as agri-food, pharmaceutical and textile products from Italy to Egypt as well as the rest of Africa and the Middle East.

Through this line, the transport times between Damietta and Trieste will be reduced to 60 hours. Egyptian products will be able to reach London or Berlin through Trieste within a week. With blockchain technology and digitisation of customs documents, the cargo can be cleared through customs before it arrives at the port, further cutting down on travel time.

According to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics, trade between Egypt and Italy reached USD 5.8 billion in 2021, up from USD 4.5 billion in 2020. During the  first quarter of the financial year 2021-2022, Italian investments in Egypt rose to USD 448.8 million, a 40.3% increase compared to USD 320 million during the last quarter of the financial year 2020-2021.