By : Bakinam Khaled
The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) has participated in the United Nations Industrial Development Organization’s (UNIDO) online webinar “Industry 4.0 in Egypt: Enhancing the Readiness for the Adoption of Industry 4.0”.
ITIDA’s CEO, Amr Mahfouz said during his speech, which he delivered on behalf of Dr. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, that Egypt is fully committed to adopting and harnessing Industry 4.0 technologies across all sectors, within its 2030 vision, aiming to develop the country as a sustainable technologically industrialized hub.
The webinar comes in light of UNIDO’s five-year Program for Country Partnership (PCP) to advance Egypt’s inclusive and sustainable industrialization.
The program aims at helping the country increase the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies in key industrial sectors to enhance the contribution of manufacturing to national economic, environmental, and social development.
The PCP supports Egypt’s efforts in achieving its industrial development goals, outlined in the Sustainable Development Strategy: Egypt Vision 2030. Accordingly, the PCP will focus on industrial policy and governance, investment promotion, green industry, smart cities and sustainable industrial parks, value chains, and mainstreaming Industry 4.0 in priority industrial sectors, including chemicals, electronics, food, textiles, leather, furniture, and handicrafts.
Mahfouz remarked that MCIT, in cooperation with the Ministry of Trade and Industry, are assisting various state sectors to adopt new technologies including automation, augmented reality, the internet of things, and AI, which helps in cost reduction, while enhancing both productivity and quality.
Mahfouz added: “The emerging technologies of Industry 4.0 promise improved value chains, methods of production and business models, which are of utmost importance particularly to SMEs in different sectors”.
“The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology is particularly focusing on promoting and adopting emerging technologies such as, the Internet of Things, Big Data Analytics, Microelectronics, Digital Fabrication, Additive Manufacturing, Robotics, Cybersecurity in specific industries, mainly the Engineering sector, Agro-food, smart cities and other related industries” Mahfouz noted.
Mahfouz stated that in order to reap the benefit from Industry 4.0 technologies, MCIT has designed the right ecosystem, based on digital transformation efforts, Electronics Industry plans and establishing an Artificial Intelligence strategy. Egypt, also has increased considerably the amount of digital infrastructure investments, dedicating USD1.6 billion for this purpose.
Mahfouz additionally mentioned that MCIT and MoTI joined forces with the private sector to establish and equip the first Industry 4.0 Innovation Center (IIC) in Egypt. With a prime location in the Knowledge City in the New Administrative Capital, The IIC aims at raising awareness of the technologies of the 4th Industrial Revolution and its practical applications in smart factories, adopting advanced technology in local manufacturing, and providing training in automation and digitization techniques.
This comes in addition to providing the necessary support in the areas of stimulating industrial innovation and designing smart factories in a way that contributes to the transfer of knowledge and the development of the industrial sector.
The IIC includes a training laboratory for the 4.0 applications for students, entrepreneurs and industrial facilities, and a product development laboratory that includes design programs and prototyping manufacturing machines in addition to the production process development laboratory. The center incorporates a simulation of a smart factory with the techniques of 4.0 devices, equipment and tools for developing smart systems. The Center also targets a number of segments to benefit from its services, including factories, SMEs, startups, and students, in addition to sponsoring and supporting graduation projects in related fields.
Lastly, Mahfouz noted ITIDA’s efforts to promote adopting 4.0 industry technologies including its recent (DX4SW) initiative, which aims to support digital transformation and enterprise agility in the local IT sector, by helping software development companies achieve their digital strategies and business objectives. He also mentioned “Egypt Makes Electronics”-EME Initiative, which aims to transform traditional mechanisms and common practices of manufacturing electronics and home appliances to industry 4.0 techniques and practices, in order to bring about a qualitative transformation in the industry and to mark Egypt as a leading regional hub for innovative electronic designs.
