Egypt plans to launch a national strategy for data centers by the end of 2026, as announced by Minister of Communications and Information Technology Raafat Hindi during the opening of the eighth edition of FDC Summit 2026. The strategy aims to establish an integrated framework for developing the data center industry and maximizing the economic return from Egypt’s location and digital infrastructure.
Hindi said that the ministry no longer seeks merely to have data pass through Egyptian territory, but is instead working to host and process data inside the country, attract new investments in data centers and cloud services, as well as develop applications and export digital services to regional and global markets.
From a Data Corridor to a Hosting and Processing Hub
The plan is based on the passage of approximately 20 international submarine cables through Egypt. According to the minister, these cables carry nearly 90% of internet traffic between Europe and Asia. This geographic location gives Egypt an important foundation for building services that go beyond network transit, but turning this advantage into economic returns requires an actual expansion of hosting and processing capabilities, rather than simply relying on location.
According to the presentation delivered at the summit, data centers are connected to the operation of digital services, data hosting, and support for artificial intelligence and advanced computing applications, in addition to ensuring the continuity of critical services and providing computing resources to government entities, researchers, and startups.
The Strategy as Part of a Broader Digital Program
The data center plan comes within a broader vision to build a digital economy, strengthen digital sovereignty, protect data, and ensure decision-making independence in strategic fields. The ministry aims to reach 400 government services on the Digital Egypt platform by 2030, while integrating digital identity, electronic signatures, and digital mail to redesign the experience of obtaining government services.
The ministry is also working through 24 Creativa Egypt Digital Innovation Centers in 20 governorates to support skills and startups, from training and incubation to consulting and connecting companies and freelancers with markets.
A Direct Connection to Artificial Intelligence
The announcement coincided with a review of the second phase of the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy for the period 2025–2030, which focuses on governance, technology, data, infrastructure, the ecosystem, and capacity building. The phase aims to support more than 250 artificial intelligence-based startups, train more than 30,000 specialists, and enable 36% of citizens to use artificial intelligence-powered tools by 2030.
The minister also pointed to the development of a large national Arabic-language model by Egyptian engineers at the Applied Innovation Center, alongside other applications aimed at serving state sectors.
What Will Change in Practice?
If the strategy translates into investments and operational capabilities, Egypt could move from being a major corridor for international communications to becoming a regional hub for hosting and processing data and providing cloud services. However, the current announcement does not yet specify the size of the investments, the locations of the projects, energy, connectivity, and availability standards, or the regulatory framework that will govern data hosting. Expansion in data centers and artificial intelligence also raises cybersecurity requirements, which the minister identified as a pillar for protecting digital infrastructure and ensuring service continuity.