Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has received his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall in Cairo, where they discussed the developments of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and what this file means for the entire population of the Nile Valley.
Al-Sisi said that Egypt’s vision is based on the fact that the Nile River is a source of cooperation, and a comprehensive lifeline for the peoples of the Nile Basin countries according to international law and the outcomes of the United Nations’ Security Council in this regard.
The Egyptian president stressed the need to reach a legally binding agreement regulating the operation and filling of the dam within an appropriate time frame.
Al-Sisi also discussed some challenges facing the African continent, especially the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the continent, as well as efforts to combat terrorism and extremism that some African countries suffer from.
They stressed the importance of concerted continental efforts in order to ensure that all African countries have access to vaccines, work to localise their industry on the continent, and reduce the negative effects of the pandemic so that our African countries can return to economic and development activity.
Furthermore, the president discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations during the coming period in various political and economic fields and affirmed Egypt’s determination to advance these relations by increasing the rates of trade exchange and encouraging mutual investments, stressing the importance of achieving maximum benefit from the inauguration of the Council of Senegalese Egyptian businessmen.
Both sides also stressed the need to intensify cooperation in the field of transferring Egyptian expertise, providing technical support, and building the capacities of national cadres in Senegal by continuing the training programmes offered by the Egyptian Agency for Partnership for Development in various sectors.
Additionally, the leaders discussed views on a number of current regional and international issues, as they affirmed Egypt’s interest to maintain peace and security and achieve stability in the continent, including East Africa and the Horn of Africa, as well as the African Sahel region, which is witnessing intertwined developments and challenges due to the exacerbation and expansion of terrorist groups.
Moreover, both leaders affirmed their readiness to support African efforts to combat terrorism and extremist ideology by providing rehabilitation and capacity-building programmes through specialised Egyptian agencies, as well as its ancient religious institutions, in order to uphold the moderate Islamic values that Egypt advocates in order to eliminate terrorism.
The presidents also exchanged views on Egypt’s hosting and presidency of the 27th session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) in November 2022.
Al-Sisi expressed Egypt’s aspiration during the coming period for continuous consultation with Senegal, in its capacity as the Chair of the African Union, in order to crystallise a unified African position on the priority issues and topics of the continent that will be addressed during the conference.
