Written by: Ahmed Gomaa
Thursday, February 16, 2023 06:07 PM
Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met in Addis Ababa today, Thursday, with the Executive Director of the African Union Agency for Development – NEPAD Nardas Bekele .
According to Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Executive Director of the NEPAD Agency congratulated the Minister of Foreign Affairs on Egypt’s assumption of the presidency of the NEPAD Steering Committee at the level of heads of state and government, reviewing the priorities of the NEPAD Agency’s work during the coming period, most notably emphasizing the importance of mobilizing funding to implement projects Infrastructure that contributes to the process of continental connectivity, as well as the implementation of the initiative Energize Africa Supporting the role of women and the family in development. The NEPAD Executive Director also expressed her aspiration for continuous coordination with Egypt during the next two years to chair the Steering Committee, noting her desire to visit Egypt and meet the ministers concerned with the various development files.
The official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed Egypt’s interest in strengthening the role played by NEPAD in mobilizing resources, in order to maximize the benefit from the Continental Free Trade Agreement and create corridors for development between African countries and value-added chains within the continent, with reference to the interest that Egypt attaches. To implement the river link project between Lake Victoria and the Mediterranean Sea, which the President is spearheading within the framework of the Presidential Program for African Infrastructure Leadership SMALL.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs also reviewed Egypt’s interest in cooperating with NEPAD in the context of formulating, financing and implementing the programs that will be undertaken by the African Union Center for Post-Conflict Development and Reconstruction hosted by Cairo, taking into account the leadership of the President of the Republic in this file, in addition to Egypt’s experience in implementing reconstruction projects in Conflict areas, including, for example, what Egypt has built in southern Sudan in terms of schools, health units, and power stations, with Egypt looking forward to cooperate with NEPAD to transfer these experiences to other conflict areas on the continent.
