When we talk about the Alexandria Chamber, the scope will be long because it is one of the commercial edifices in Egypt that was established from a national standpoint and since the date of its inception in 1922 when the first meeting was held to establish it. The purpose of establishing the Chamber of Commerce was to create an entity capable of confronting the many foreign chambers of foreign merchants who monopolize commercial activity and so that merchants can Egyptian manufacturers faced the economic developments that the country was witnessing in light of a national movement calling for economic liberation and raising the slogan of Egyptian industry and its protection, which is the approach that the Chamber has continued since its inception until the present time.

 

The Alexandria Chamber had and still has its national positions in support of successive Egyptian governments, especially in times of adversity and crises, and its role in preserving the integrity of the national economy, stabilizing the markets, and preserving the Egyptian consumer. In the wake of World War I, it intervened in addressing the negative effects resulting from the war, intervening in solving the sugar problem that was suffering. Among them are merchants, lifting restrictions on their trade, the issue of reducing the freight of ships and railways, reducing land fees, the issue of reducing tram tariffs and returning them to what they were after fuel costs decreased, the issue of complaining about the assessment of property taxes, and other problems that were preoccupying the minds of merchants and of concern to the city in general in those years. It was not the first in the Chamber’s life, but it was the most concerned about the safety of Egyptian workers, so its distinguished role at the beginning of its reign was in drawing the attention of the Alexandria Municipality and the Ministry of Interior since 1923 to the poor health condition in the national neighborhoods, especially the Karmouz section, which is inhabited by the largest number of craftsmen and workers because of neglect. The health condition in these areas inevitably affects the health of workers, resulting in a decrease in their number due to the spread of deadly diseases and a large number of deaths. The country that is complaining of a commercial and industrial crisis deserves to preserve the lives of craftsmen and workers, while drawing its attention to the necessity of creating a law to protect craftsmen and workers, especially those who They work in factories that contain toxic materials and other things that affect their health condition

 

The Chamber began with a set of concepts aimed at organizing the trade movement and preserving the rights of consumers, beginning in 1923, by educating merchants about the importance of inspecting and reviewing the balance sheets and ensuring their cleanliness, and establishing regular markets to improve the state of trade, industry, and agriculture. The beginning was with markets for eggs and onions in 1924 to eliminate the phenomenon of fraud in them. Not only that, but it took the lead at the beginning of its work in preparing reports on the market situation, and these reports were the focus of attention of the Department of Trade and Industry, especially for crops, and it always requested them from the Chamber to disseminate them to merchants and others interested in the country’s economic affairs, given that the Chambers are the most informed bodies about the market situation. It monitors its fluctuations and their causes.

 

Because the issue of training was and still is one of the things that the Chamber places on its list of priorities to raise the efficiency of workers in the field of commerce, the Chamber has adopted, since the beginning of its establishment in 1922, organizing training courses in the art of Arabic shorthand at the Chamber’s center 3 times a week for merchants, students, and those wishing to develop their professional performance, as was the case. Courses are organized to guide merchants on what should be followed in organizing and coordinating their books and taking care of their accuracy so that they are legal books worthy of the dignity of commerce and merchants. To preserve the dignity of merchants, the Chamber decided, since 1934, to issue personal card tickets to members of the Chamber to make it easier for them, when necessary, to prove their identity as members of the Chamber. This was a strong national beginning. For this great national economic edifice, in 1927, the Chamber was able to stand up to foreign merchants when they opposed the royal decree regarding the rules for establishing joint-stock companies. It rejected all attempts by foreign chambers to cancel this decree, stressing that the Chamber had no opportunity to challenge the authorities of the Egyptian government, especially since it believed that The royal decree regarding the establishment of joint-stock companies does not cause any harm to the interests of its members. Rather, on the contrary, it is appropriate for the general common economic interests, as it guarantees that the board of directors of each Egyptian joint-stock company shall have two national members, that a quarter of its employees who assume clerical and technical jobs be nationals, and that a quarter of its shares be acquired. Patriots. The Chamber had a leading role in supporting and encouraging the national industry by holding permanent exhibitions to promote the national industry, as the largest part of this giant building was an exhibition of national products. Not only that, but it was able, through agreement with the Bank of Egypt, to establish a credit system for exhibitors participating in the chamber’s exhibitions. Trade from manufacturers by guaranteeing their exhibits and with an interest not exceeding 2 or 3%, as the purpose of these advances is to encourage and assist manufacturers and in continuation of its role in encouraging national industry. The Chamber has prepared a commercial guide for the city of Alexandria in Arabic and French that meets the needs of merchants, manufacturers, tourists and others. The Chamber is also the first Whoever thought about obtaining a certificate of origin for national goods at the beginning of its establishment in 1922. The Alexandria Chamber was the constant supporter of the movement of chambers of commerce in Egypt. Since 1925, it has been adopting the idea of establishing a general federation of chambers of commerce. It has already come into existence through a conference of chambers organized by the Alexandria Chamber in coordination with the Chamber of Commerce. Cairo, in February of 1926. The Council of the General Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce in Cairo was elected from Abdel Hamid Pasha El-Deeb, President of the Alexandria Chamber, as President of the Federation, Taha Bey El-Sargany, Mohamed Zaki Bey El-Sheety, Vice-Chairman, Mohamed Ismail Obada as Treasurer, and Ali Bey Shukri Khamis, General Secretary of the Alexandria Chamber, as Secretary. Years of the Union, and Abdulaziz Bey Radwan, Muhammad Bey Badawy, Hussein Bey Ajami, Muhammad Effendi, Hassan Al-Iskandarani, Nassif Effendi Mahrous, Sheikh Ahmed Badawy, and Muhammad Effendi Shaaban are members. All of these strong beginnings were the basis for a process of work and activity that continued for more than 86 years.

During this period, despite the differences in economic and political systems, the Chamber was able to adapt and seek to preserve the rights of merchants and businesses to stimulate economic life in the city of Alexandria. The real launch of the Chamber was in the historical era that falls between the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century, where the Chamber, through its elected boards of directors, moved to... Creating a technological shift that differs from those previous historical eras, which witnessed great developments. We imagine that the most prominent of them is the Alexandria Electronic City Project and the pioneering project adopted by the Chamber in cooperation with the Alexandria Governorate to restore the cultural splendor of the ancient city, in addition to the community center and last but not least the logistical center and the return of the Chamber’s ancient historical building to its former state. During his reign, we review together through this file the life of the Chamber from the files of its Board of Directors beginning in 1922 until the present day.