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In a sign of deepening ties between the UAE and Egypt, the two countries signed an agreement last month to build a massive new $45 billion administrative capital on the outskirts of Cairo.

The agreement, signed during an international investment conference in Sharm El Sheikh, came alongside several other major announcements by private UAE firms to invest in Egypt.

Capital City Partners, a private real estate investment fund headed by Emaar chairman Mohammed Alabbar, will build the new Egyptian city, although Emaar clarified that it was not involved with the project.

The new city will occupy 700 sqkm of land to the east of Cairo and will accommodate seven million people when complete. The development is expected to include an airport, 2,000 schools and colleges and more than 600 healthcare facilities, officials said at the conference.

A major portion of the project is also expected to be named after Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi’s crown prince and deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

The UAE has been one of the strongest supporters of Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as the country looks to revive its lagging economy following four years of political instability. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, VP and PM of the UAE and Dubai's ruler tweeted last month that UAE aid to Egypt over the past two years had reached $14 billion.

However, the support has not only come from the leadership; several private UAE companies are also investing heavily as they hope to cash in on Egypt’s economic revival.

Retail conglomerate Majid Al Futtaim said that it plans to increase its investments in Egypt by 4.5 billion Egyptian pounds ($590 million) from the current 18 billion to 22.5 billion Egyptian pounds.

UAE-based Dana Gas also said it plans to invest almost $350 million over the next 30 months, while Abu Dhabi-based firm KBBO announced that it will invest $2 billion in health, waste management, money exchange and renewable energy in Egypt.