Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous state, has been
looking to expand its agricultural investments in east Africa.
Last month the prime minister sent a committee to investigate
growing wheat in Uganda.
Eastern Company will buy the land and seek the expertise of
international companies to cultivate the crop. Among companies
it is considering partnerships with are Universal Corp,
Alliance One International (AOI.N: ) and a British group.
“Eastern Company will enter into an equal partnership with
one of these companies, once an agreement is made, to begin
benefitting from its expertise in the field of tobacco
cultivation,” al-Mal quoted Nabil Abdel Aziz as saying.
Procedures for receiving the land and agreeing with a
company could take up to a year, the paper cited Abdel Aziz as
saying.
Eastern Company was not immediately available for comment.
