Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry and Portuguese counterpart Augusto Santos Silva (Photo: Ministry of foreign affairs)
The foreign ministers of Egypt and Portugal held the first meeting of a joint cooperation committee between the two states in Cairo on Thursday, signing five deals and memorandums of understanding, Egypt's foreign ministry said.
Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry and Portuguese counterpart Augusto Santos Silva discussed investment opportunities for Portugal in Egypt and efforts to step up trade between the two countries, which now stands at 181 million euros.
The two countries signed agreements in areas including tourism, youth and sports and air services.
Silva is currently visiting Cairo along with a 26-member delegation of Portuguese businessmen.
The two ministers talked about Egypt's political ties with EU countries and Cairo's economic reform programme. They also discussed a number of key regional issues including illegal migration and reconciliation between Palestinian factions.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi visited Portugal in November 2016. The visit was the first by an Egyptian president in two decades.
On Wednesday, El-Sisi received Portuguese Secretary of State for Administrative Modernisation Graça Fonseca, where they discussed how Egypt can benefit from Portugal's experience in administrative and economic reform, developing the public sector and streamlining government spending.
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