Egyptian Business Institutional Support (EBIS) Partnership Program Egypt / Germany Food Business Trade Facilitation Partnership Program Duration: December 2004 – November 2005 The general objective of this project between the Egyptian Chamber of Food Industries (CFI), the iet Service GmbH / Federation of German Wholesale and Foreign Trade (BGA) and Global Project Partners was to raise the competitiveness of the Egyptian food products in order to increase its export opportunities for the EU market as well as to potential third markets. Further, the project aimed at supporting the CFI and its staff members in order to increase their scope of services offered to their member companies. Both elements were seen as a mutual benefit for both European importers and Egyptian exporters. This project comprised information about marketing and distribution in Germany and the EU, packaging and German and EU food law and the improvement of services in the Egyptian Chamber of Food Industries. Two conferences which took place in Cairo and several delegation trips of CFI staff to Germany and Brussels served for mutual exchange, a better understanding of structures in Germany and the EU, a sustainable transfer of knowledge and increased the staff's capabilities in areas crucial for successful work of the chamber. This project was implemented in the framework of the EBIS Program which was managed by EUROCHAMBRES and financially supported by the Egyptian Industrial Modernisation Centre (IMC). In August 2005 the project partners CFI, BGA and GPP signed a Memorandum of Understanding in order to institutionalise the cooperation in the future.