CAIRO — Egypt is overcoming the harm from numerous nations' longstanding bans on its horses and is once again turning into a major area for investment in purebred Arabian horses.

The Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture announced Sept. 6 that Jordan has become the most recent country to lift its ban. That announcement comes a year after Egypt resumed horse exports to the European Union, shipping eight horses Aug. 7, 2017. The EU had imposed a ban in 2010 on Egyptian horse imports after a medical committee affiliated with the EU found that Egyptian horses are vaccinated against the West Nile virus. The discovery raised concerns about how widespread the disease might be in Egypt. The results also pushed Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and some other Arab nations, such as Jordan, to ban Egyptian horse imports.

In 2015, Egypt submitted a report to the EU saying samples had been taken from all horse breeds in all Egyptian provinces to make sure they didn't suffer from any dangerous diseases. All results confirmed the horses weren't infected with the West Nile virus. In 2016, the EU reversed its decision, and Egypt’s exports to the EU resumed in 2017.

The Egyptian government is working to turn the country into an international arena for investment in horses.