Presidential hopeful Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi began the first day of campaigning Saturday by meeting a delegation of Egyptian media personnel.

According to his official campaign, the meeting came out of El-Sisi's concern to "communicate with public opinion institutions and icons from the Egyptian media that shape the consciousness of the people."

During the meeting, the ex-minister of defence reportedly listened to the attendees vision for the upcoming phase, including how to face and surmount obstacles on the path to progress, a task that includes a role for the Egyptian media.

"The role of the media in the current phase is a critical one; they [the media] are capable of uniting Egyptians after the massive polarisation that took place in society," said El-Sisi during the meeting.

According to Al-Ahram Arabic news website, El-Sisi underlined the need for communication between the presidency, state institutions and the media in Egypt.

He further called on workers in the media field to "put the interest of the citizen first."

El-Sisi is expected to give his first televised interview ever Monday on Egyptian satellite channels ONTV and CBC.

The only two candidates in Egypt's presidential race, El-Sisi and leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi were given the green light by the Presidential Elections Committee to officially launch their election campaigns Saturday.

Campaigning will take place between 3 and 23 May, while the presidential polls — the first to be held after the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi last July — are scheduled to take place 26-27 May.