Dr. Hala Al-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development; Nivene Gamea, Minister of Industry and Trade, and the Belgian Ambassador in Cairo, also attended the signing ceremony.

Through this MoU, Egypt Gold and HRD Antwerp agreed that the latter will sponsor a set of educational programs in relation to diamond and gemstone assessment, besides founding HRD’ s first office in Egypt that will be their main office across the Middle East and Africa.

Rafaat Nassar, Board Member of Egypt Gold, said, “This agreement marks a new milestone in our strong partnership with HRD. Given the strategic position of the Egyptian market, the agreement will strongly impact the entire jewelry industry in Egypt and the entire region on numerous levels.”

Ellen Joncheere, CEO of HRD Antwerp, said: “At HRD Antwerp we believe that forming partnerships with leading companies in the industry such as Egypt Gold is of capital importance to safeguard consumer confidence throughout the jewelry and diamond pipeline now and in the future.”

Dr. Tarek Shawki, Minister of Education in Egypt, said that such partnerships enrich the market with more talent and opportunities, steering positive returns for the jewelry industry in Egypt and across the region.

Egypt Gold Group is a family-run business active in the gold and jewelry market since 1935, with a strong presence in 26 markets in Egypt and across the world. Egypt Gold Group owns six leading brands in the gold and jewelry industry, namely “Egypt Gold”, “EG Diamond”, “Iram”, “BTC”, “EG Silver”, and “EG Concept”.

Egypt Gold founded Egypt Gold School for Applied Technology in 2019, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education in Egypt, a first-­of-its-kind school specialized in jewelry design and making.