Sustainability and Competition Global Practice Guide |
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Egypt |
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(Africa)
Firm
Shalakany Law Office
Contributors
Omar Sherif |
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| Are ESG measures/sustainability agreements included in your jurisdictional competition regime? | ESG measures and/or sustainability agreements are not expressly regulated under the Egyptian Competition Law. |
| If ESG measures/sustainability agreements are not included in your jurisdictional competition regime, do you foresee any new regulations coming into place in 2022? | We are not aware of any disclosed intentions by the Egyptian Competition Authority (“ECA”) to enforce new regulations covering ESG measures in the competition regime. |
| Has your Authority issued any guidance on the role, if any, of ESG in the competition law analysis applied to mergers or other conduct? | No. |
| Has your jurisdiction issued guidance regarding competitor collaborations or participating in industry working groups, and if so, do they specifically address ESG? | There are no specific regulations or guidance in this regard. |
| Can parties seek specific guidance from authorities on proposed ESG initiatives? | We are not aware of instances whereby the ECA provides parties with ESG guidance. That being said, the Financial Regulatory Authority (“FRA”) has published Key Performance Indicators ("KPIs") as guidance for ESG disclosures. Additionally, the FRA offers companies assistance with how to implement ESG measures through hosting workshops and seminars dedicated to each sector on the same. |
| How, if at all, does your jurisdiction quantify or calculate the ESG effects? | The FRA has set out KPIs for the ESG standards, which include questions regarding inter alia: (i) environmental operations and oversight; (ii) carbon emission; (iii) energy usage; (iv) water usage; (v) waste management; (vi) gender diversity and pay ratio; (vii) non-discrimination; (viii) labor rights; and (x) bribery and anti-corruption. Entities must confirm whether they are in compliance with the above KPIs, or explain the reasons for noncompliance (i.e., a comply or explain mechanism). The above, however, is limited to the entities outlined under our response to "What does your legal authority currently permit even if your agency is not yet active on this topic?" below and does not expressly apply to entities under competition-related review or investigation. |
| What does your legal authority currently permit even if your agency is not yet active on this topic? | Although the ECA does not regulate ESG, the FRA provides disclosure requirements and associated guidelines on ESG measures which primarily target listed companies and non-banking financial institutions. In this regard, the FRA requires said entities with an issued capital of no less than EGP 100,000 to disclose their ESG reports by the end of the fiscal year. Additionally, said entities must provide the FRA with quarterly reports on the measures they have taken or will take regarding these disclosures. The main goal behind said reporting is for the FRA to monitor the ESG efforts made by companies and understand the aspects on which companies will require training, workshops and/or guidance. Further to the above, the Egyptian Environmental Agency has published an Environmental Sustainability Standards Manual for parties in various sectors. Said manual contains general guidelines and does not expressly address entities’ obligations with respect to ESG from a competition perspective. |
| Are there precedents that involved ESG/sustainability matters in your country? If so please provide a short description. | We are not aware of precedents involving ESG/sustainability matters in Egypt. |
| Is there specific antitrust regulation in your jurisdiction to be aware of which might give rise to private or class action ESG litigation? | ESG is not regulated under Egyptian antitrust law and there is no specific regulation in this regard. |
Sustainability and Competition Global Practice Guide
ESG measures and/or sustainability agreements are not expressly regulated under the Egyptian Competition Law.
We are not aware of any disclosed intentions by the Egyptian Competition Authority (“ECA”) to enforce new regulations covering ESG measures in the competition regime.
No.
There are no specific regulations or guidance in this regard.
We are not aware of instances whereby the ECA provides parties with ESG guidance.
That being said, the Financial Regulatory Authority (“FRA”) has published Key Performance Indicators ("KPIs") as guidance for ESG disclosures. Additionally, the FRA offers companies assistance with how to implement ESG measures through hosting workshops and seminars dedicated to each sector on the same.
The FRA has set out KPIs for the ESG standards, which include questions regarding inter alia: (i) environmental operations and oversight; (ii) carbon emission; (iii) energy usage; (iv) water usage; (v) waste management; (vi) gender diversity and pay ratio; (vii) non-discrimination; (viii) labor rights; and (x) bribery and anti-corruption. Entities must confirm whether they are in compliance with the above KPIs, or explain the reasons for noncompliance (i.e., a comply or explain mechanism). The above, however, is limited to the entities outlined under our response to "What does your legal authority currently permit even if your agency is not yet active on this topic?" below and does not expressly apply to entities under competition-related review or investigation.
Although the ECA does not regulate ESG, the FRA provides disclosure requirements and associated guidelines on ESG measures which primarily target listed companies and non-banking financial institutions.
In this regard, the FRA requires said entities with an issued capital of no less than EGP 100,000 to disclose their ESG reports by the end of the fiscal year.
Additionally, said entities must provide the FRA with quarterly reports on the measures they have taken or will take regarding these disclosures. The main goal behind said reporting is for the FRA to monitor the ESG efforts made by companies and understand the aspects on which companies will require training, workshops and/or guidance.
Further to the above, the Egyptian Environmental Agency has published an Environmental Sustainability Standards Manual for parties in various sectors. Said manual contains general guidelines and does not expressly address entities’ obligations with respect to ESG from a competition perspective.
We are not aware of precedents involving ESG/sustainability matters in Egypt.
ESG is not regulated under Egyptian antitrust law and there is no specific regulation in this regard.