Acting on directives from President El-Sisi, Abdelatty conveyed the Egyptian leader’s greetings to Ruto and handed over the letter, reaffirming Cairo’s appreciation for the “fraternal relations” between the two countries and Egypt’s high regard for the Kenyan president’s policies in support of security, stability, and development in the Nile Basin, the Horn of Africa, and across the continent.
In a statement on Tuesday, the ministry said Abdelatty welcomed the recent upgrade of bilateral relations to a strategic partnership and the signing of the Cairo Declaration during Ruto’s visit to Egypt in late January 2025, calling it a key step in boosting political, economic, and development cooperation.
FM Abdelatty said Egypt looks forward to convening the eighth session of the Egyptian–Kenyan Joint Commission in Cairo later this year, stressing the importance of expanding cooperation in defence and security, counterterrorism, water resources and irrigation, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, logistics zones, and maritime transport.
He underscored the need to strengthen economic ties, increase Egyptian investments in Kenya, and encourage Egyptian companies to participate in development projects, particularly in infrastructure and road construction.
On water security, Abdelatty highlighted the importance of cooperation among Nile Basin countries to achieve mutual benefit, urging adherence to consensus and a spirit of partnership and warning against unilateral actions.
He welcomed recent steps within the consultative process endorsed by the Nile Basin Initiative’s ministerial council aimed at restoring consensus in line with international law and safeguarding the interests of all basin countries.
For his part, Sewilam reaffirmed Egypt’s readiness to deepen technical cooperation with Kenya in drilling groundwater wells, building rainwater-harvesting dams, applying modern irrigation systems, and providing training and capacity-building programmes in line with Kenya’s water-sector priorities.
Sewilam said Egypt supports President Ruto’s initiative to strengthen water infrastructure, noting that enhanced infrastructure would improve water management efficiency and bolster resilience to climate change impacts.
He added that Egypt is ready to support Kenyan dam projects through a new Egyptian financing mechanism, with an initial allocation of $100 million, to fund feasibility studies and implementation in Southern Nile Basin countries.
The minister said international best practices show the importance of cooperative river-basin frameworks based on respect for international water law, consideration of all parties’ concerns, and consensus, stressing the need to preserve the Nile Basin Initiative as the inclusive framework for all basin states.
Meanwhile, Ruto asked that his greetings and appreciation be conveyed to El-Sisi, praising the Egyptian president’s role in promoting security and stability in Africa and the Middle East.
He reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to strengthening cooperation with Egypt, citing the historic ties between the two countries, and expressed Nairobi’s desire to further develop the strategic partnership in ways that serve shared interests.
In earlier remarks, Abdelatty said the new Egyptian financing mechanism is part of a broader set of state-backed tools launched under directives from President El-Sisi to strengthen Egypt’s role in Africa.
He explained that Cairo has introduced three key mechanisms to reshape its engagement on the continent.
The first mechanism is a dedicated financing facility to support development and infrastructure projects in Nile Basin countries, particularly in the Southern Nile Basin states overlooking the White Nile.
Backed by the Egyptian government with approximately $100 million in funding, the mechanism is designed to finance development projects, including the construction of certain dams in Southern Basin countries, provided they do not harm Egypt.
He said Cairo is in contact with the World Bank and international partners to mobilize additional funding for such projects.
The move, he said, shows that Egypt supports development, but opposes actions that threaten its national interests as a downstream country, along with Sudan.
The second mechanism focuses on strengthening investment and trade relations with African countries through the Egyptian Export and Investment Guarantee Agency for Africa. The agency is expected to provide financing and risk guarantees to Egyptian small and medium-sized enterprises seeking to operate in African markets.
At the same time, Egypt has doubled the budget of the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development to expand support for development projects across Africa, including training programmes, capacity-building initiatives, medical convoys, and other technical and humanitarian assistance.
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