Egypt is hitting its stride by harnessing its natural resources and digital innovation to drive economic growth. After years of reforms, the country’s mining sector and ICT (information and communication technology) sector are both booming. This dual expansion shows Egypt “firing on all cylinders.”
On one hand, Egypt is unlocking its rich mineral deposits through new regulations and investments, aiming to increase mining’s contribution to the economy vastly. On the other hand, the government’s “Digital Egypt” initiative is propelling a fast-growing tech sector, with the ICT industry on track to double in size by decade’s end. This one-two punch of natural resource development and digital transformation is poised to reshape Egypt’s economic landscape by 2030.
Mines Of Egypt Carry The Economy
Long overshadowed by oil and gas, Egypt’s mining industry is now a strategic pillar for diversification. The sector currently contributes under 1% of GDP, but the government has launched sweeping modernisation efforts to raise mining’s GDP share to 5-6% by 2030.
This represents a sixfold expansion as an ambitious goal reflecting untapped mineral potential. Reforms have focused on making Egypt more attractive to global miners. The state-dominated, bureaucratic licensing regime has been overhauled.
The Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority is being transformed into an autonomous “economic” entity to streamline permits and fast-track projects. New mining laws and contract models offer clearer terms and profit-sharing to investors, replacing outdated frameworks. As a result, major international players have shown interest.
Egypt signed new gold exploration agreements with industry giants like Barrick Gold and AngloGold Ashanti, signalling growing confidence in the country’s mining potential. The government is also digitising mining data and launching an online portal for licensing to improve transparency and efficiency.
These efforts are already yielding striking results, especially in gold. Egypt has significant gold reserves (part of the Arabian-Nubian Shield geology), and production is rising fast. In fact, gold exports nearly doubled in 2024, reaching USD 2.17 billion in the first nine months of 2024, up from USD 1.11 billion a year earlier.
This surge was aided by policy tweaks like removing export fees on gold jewellery and by high global gold prices. Traditional partners such as the UAE and Switzerland have been major buyers of Egyptian gold. With new mines and exploration blocks opening up, officials foresee even greater growth as a national strategy is being finalised to boost gold and jewellery exports by at least 15% annually through 2030.
Egypt’s global ranking in gold production has already leapt upward from 94th to 54th in just one year (2022 to 2023), and the country aspires to join the world’s top 10 gold exporters by 2027. Beyond gold, Egypt is rich in other minerals (phosphates, iron, rare metals), and new exploration is underway across the Eastern Desert and Sinai. In short, liberalisation and investment are unleashing Egypt’s mineral wealth, turning mining into a key growth engine after decades of stagnation.
Digital Egypt And An ICT Boom
Parallel to its mining renaissance, Egypt is undergoing a digital transformation that is fuelling explosive growth in the ICT sector. The government’s Digital Egypt strategy aims to turn Egypt into a regional technology hub by upgrading infrastructure, nurturing talent, and promoting e-government and innovation.
The results so far are impressive, as the ICT industry has been the fastest-growing sector in Egypt, clocking an annual growth of around 15%. It’s significantly outpacing overall GDP growth. In fiscal year 2022/23, ICT investments jumped 20%, reaching USD 4.2 billion, indicating strong investor confidence in the sector.
The digital economy’s expansion is evident in its market size. Egypt’s ICT market is projected to grow from USD 23.6 billion in 2025 to $53.1 billion by 2030, equating to a robust 17.6% compound annual growth rate. This doubling of market value in just five years reflects surging demand for telecom services, IT outsourcing, fintech, and digital services among Egypt’s youthful, tech-savvy population.
Key drivers of this boom include massive infrastructure projects (new fibre networks, data centres), a flourishing startup scene, and government support for tech education. Under the Digital Egypt umbrella, the country has built technology parks and innovation hubs, and invested over USD 1 billion in advancing 5G and digital infrastructure.
The ICT sector’s contribution to GDP has steadily risen (about 5% of GDP in 2023/24) and is creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. Notably, Egypt has become a global outsourcing destination as its large pool of IT graduates and competitive costs have attracted multinational tech companies and call centres.
Tech exports (IT and business process services) are growing by double digits annually. The push for e-government and digital payments is also bringing more citizens online and expanding the market for local tech firms.
Chips And New Businesses Bring Hope
One particularly exciting facet of Egypt’s tech rise is the emergence of a semiconductor and high-tech startup ecosystem, as it is something previously unseen in the region at scale. A flagship example is InfiniLink, a Cairo-based semiconductor startup that recently made headlines by raising USD 10 million in seed funding from global investors.
Founded in 2022 by Egyptian engineers, InfiniLink develops advanced optical connectivity chips designed for AI-driven data centres. Its technology uses silicon photonics to dramatically improve data centre bandwidth and energy efficiency, thereby meeting the huge demands of artificial intelligence (AI) workloads.
The company’s successful funding round in 2025 was led by MediaTek, one of the world’s top chip designers, and a Saudi VC firm, marking a significant international vote of confidence in Egyptian tech talent. With this backing, InfiniLink aims to bring its home-grown innovation to global markets and address next-generation computing needs.
InfiniLink is part of a broader trend of Egyptian startups moving into high-value tech fields like microelectronics, fintech, and cleantech. Government initiatives such as the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Strategy and venture funding programs have created a supportive environment for startups.
Moreover, partnerships with foreign tech firms (e.g. the establishment of MediaTek Egypt) are transferring know-how to local engineers. The country’s large youth population provides a strong talent base. As a result, Egypt has begun to carve out a niche in areas like chip design, electronics assembly, and software development.
The semiconductor space, in particular, is viewed as a strategic frontier. By building capabilities in chip design and manufacturing (even if at a small scale initially), Egypt could tap into the immense global demand for chips, from consumer electronics to automotive and AI applications.
AI: The Catalyst Of Growth
Egypt’s simultaneous mining surge and digital boom position it uniquely among emerging economies. On the natural resources side, boosting mining to 5–6% of GDP by 2030 would not only earn much-needed foreign exchange (through gold and mineral exports) but also create jobs in remote areas and related industries.
However, realising this target will require sustained investor interest and careful management of resources and also include environmental and social safeguards as mining expands. The government’s commitment to modernise regulations and ensure equitable agreements will be key to attracting the billions in investment needed.
On the digital side, Egypt’s ICT sector is on track to be a cornerstone of the economy, driving innovation and productivity across all sectors. By 2030, a digitally transformed Egypt could see benefits in everything from efficient public services to a thriving tech startup scene that competes regionally.
Challenges exist here too, as maintaining the high growth rate means continuously upgrading digital infrastructure, improving English-language and advanced tech education, and navigating global tech trends that can change quickly. Competition from other emerging IT hubs will be a factor as well.
Nonetheless, Egypt’s recent indicators inspire optimism. Despite global economic headwinds, gold exports are hitting record highs, and the ICT sector is reaching new heights. Few countries of Egypt’s size are managing to develop industrial-era resources and digital-age industries at the same time.
If Cairo can keep both momentum streams flowing, the payoff by 2030 could be substantial with a more resilient, diversified economy where miners and coders contribute to prosperity. In essence, Egypt is unleashing the power of its natural endowments and its human capital concurrently.