The speech was delivered on the president’s behalf by Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, who said Egypt’s approach is aligned with the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and reflects the importance of Africa’s strategic partnerships with major international powers.
“This meeting embodies the importance of strengthening cooperation to achieve peace, security and development, in line with Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want,” Abdelatty said, quoting the president.
El-Sisi acknowledged that despite efforts by African states, the continent continues to face significant development challenges, including weak infrastructure, limited financing and high risks.
“Development in Africa still faces several challenges, including weak infrastructure, insufficient funding and high risks,” the president said.
According to the address, Egypt’s development vision for Africa rests on five pillars: supporting strategic transport corridors and logistics zones; strengthening energy cooperation and electricity interconnection; promoting agricultural development and food security; boosting intra-African trade; and enhancing cooperation in communications, information technology and artificial intelligence.
Outlining Egypt’s economic engagement, El-Sisi said Cairo is committed to utilising “all available cooperation tools” to support African development, including encouraging Egyptian companies to expand investments and partnerships across the continent.
He noted that total Egyptian investments in Africa have exceeded $12 billion, while trade volumes have surpassed $10 billion.
On capacity-building, El-Sisi said Egypt “continues to support human development and capacity-building programmes in Africa” through the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development, which has implemented more than 700 training programmes in line with African countries’ priorities.
Addressing shared water resources, the president stressed that “there is no room for any unilateral actions that would harm the rights of riparian states in transboundary rivers, or undermine opportunities for cooperation and achieving common benefit.”
He added that Egypt has long sought to achieve “fair and equitable utilisation of water resources, in accordance with the rules of international law,” including cooperation on dam construction and joint development projects within the Nile Basin.
On regional security, El-Sisi emphasised the close link between Egypt and the Horn of Africa, stressing that “achieving and sustaining stability in the region, as well as ensuring the security of navigation in the Red Sea, are essential elements of regional and international security.”
From this standpoint, he announced Egypt’s intention to participate in the new African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), saying Cairo is also exerting efforts to secure the necessary funding for the mission.
On counter-terrorism, the president said Egypt is keen to strengthen cooperation with African countries through a comprehensive approach that “considers security, development, intellectual and social dimensions,” highlighting the role of Al-Azhar and the Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding.
El-Sisi reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to supporting African Union institutions, particularly those hosted in Cairo, and to advancing post-conflict reconstruction efforts across the continent.
He also reiterated Egypt’s support for African positions in international forums, stating that Cairo “will continue to defend African visions and positions, particularly regarding the reform of the UN Security Council,” in line with the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration.
The president concluded by welcoming participating ministers to Cairo and expressing hope for “fruitful discussions that will contribute to supporting joint African action.”
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