Deputy Foreign Minister for African Affairs Hamdy Loza
Deputy Foreign Minister for African Affairs Hamdy Loza reiterated Egypt's support of the Sahel countries on bilateral and regional levels, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
Loza's statement came during his participation at the second ministerial meeting of the Sahel Alliance that was held virtually on Friday.
Loza said that Sahel-related issues were tackled during a session at the Aswan Forum, which was held on 1-5 March, noting that the conclusions and recommendations of this session will be provided to the secretariat of the Alliance within the upcoming days.
Friday's meeting adopted a road map to support the five countries - in countering terrorism - by reinforcing military capabilities of national armies and the joint force as well as, consolidating state agencies there.
The Sahel countries' group - called G5 Sahel - includes Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad.
It was established by the five countries in Nouakchott, Mauritania in February 2014 to boost economic development and security in the region as well as, combat the growing threat of terrorism.
The five countries are facing many challenges, including insecurity; rising extremism; a lack of economic prospects among others.
In 2017, France, Germany and the European Union (EU) announced the launch of the Sahel Alliance to support the five countries.
Short link: