In a statement on Monday, the National Dialogue’s board of trustees called all on these parties to "continue their positive efforts toward creating a democratic atmosphere for multi-candidate presidential elections.”

The board hailed President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s quick response to its previous proposal of renewing legislation that stipulates full judicial supervision over elections and referendums.

Egypt is scheduled to hold its next presidential elections in mid-2024, six years after El-Sisi won a second term in a landslide victory against his sole contender, Ghad Party chairman Moussa Mostafa Moussa.

National dialogue further demands

Moreover, the board said it looks forward to the president’s use of his constitutional powers to pardon more prisoners who received sentences over the coming period.

The board added that it hopes that the Presidential Pardon Committee, reactivated by El-Sisi in April 2022, will intensify its legal efforts to release those who are still being held in detention without trial.

Additionally, the board called for continued support for the National Dialogue and urged all parties to give the dialogue appropriate time to manifest specific proposals on political, economic, and social issues, which will be submitted to the president.

The National Dialogue, initiated by the president last year, kicked off on Wednesday with the participation of several political forces — including the opposition.

The dialogue also witnessed the participation of civil society groups, professional and labour unions, as well as public figures, and is scheduled to continue its public sessions over the coming week.

In a recorded speech at the opening session, the president emphasized his support for the dialogue and promised to "provide all means necessary to ensure its success and activate its outcomes within a framework of democracy and effective political practice."

First week sessions

The board of trustees scheduled public discussions for the dialogue’s political, economic and social tracks on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday respectively, which will take place at the Cairo International Convention Center in Nasr City.

The political track will hold four sessions on Sunday to discuss topics such as the parliamentary electoral system, eliminating all forms of discrimination, and the challenges facing cooperatives.

Meanwhile, the economic track will hold four sessions on Tuesday to discuss social protection programmes, formulating Egypt’s tourist map and means of stimulating all forms of tourism investments.

In addition, on Thursday, the social track's sessions will focus on issues of guardianship and national identity.