Egypt’s Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat has met with Sergey Stolyarov, CEO of Russian Railways International (RZD) and Sergey Pavlov, the First Deputy Managing Director of Russian Railways JSC to discuss joint cooperation in the transportation sector.
Minister Al-Mashat stressed that the Egyptian Government is interested in developing the country’s transportation sector and enhancing its sustainability, all while further connecting cities and communities.
This would help increase the effectiveness of the development plans being implemented, with the minister adding that the transportation sector accounts for over 20% of the ongoing development cooperation portfolio in the Ministry of International Cooperation.
This amounts to $5.13bn, with these funds contributing to many projects, including the development of metro lines, the implementation of the national road projects, and the modernisation of Egypt’s railways.
Minister Al-Mashat also mentioned that there is continuous coordination between Egypt’s Ministries of International Cooperation, and Transportation, to strengthen international partnerships with multilateral and bilateral development partners.
This is in the hopes to provide the necessary financing and expertise to develop a fully rounded, sustainable transport sector.
In 2018, a contract was signed between Egypt’s National Railways Authority (ENRA) and the Russian company Transmashholding, to manufacture and supply 1,300 new railway cars. Of this amount, 375 have so far been delivered. There are also a number of projects proposed that will be implemented between Egypt’s Ministry of Transportation and Russian Railways.
The Egyptian-Russian relations are made up of comprehensive partnerships and strategic cooperation agreements. Several development agreements were signed in October 2018 in Sochi, to strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries and aid in achieving common interests, alongside economic growth.
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